BOOK    398.2  1.M1  13F    c.  1 

MABIE    #    FOLK    TALES    EVERY    CHILD 

SHOULD    KNOW 


3    T1S3    0D15M311    4 


ENTEREDN0V2  5  1990 


FOLK  TALES 
EVERY  CHILD  SHOULD   KNOW 


■'There  were  giants  on   the  earth   in   those  days" 


\ 


W'TM 


f 


EVERY    CHILD    SHOULD    KNOW 


/ 


A  SELECTION  OF  POPULAR  TRADITIONS  OF  VARIOUS 
NATIONS  FOR  YOUNG  PEOPLE 

Edited  by 

HAMILTON    WRIGHT    MABIE 


NEW  YORK 
GROSSET   &    DUNLAP 

Publishers 


:p,  o 


I   t 


ALL  RIGHTS  RESERVED 
COPYRIGHT,  I912,  BY  CALE  YOUNG  BICE 


Jis;? 


PRINTED  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

AT 

THE  COUNTRY  LIFE  PRESS,  GARDEN  CITY,  N.  V. 


ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 

The  editor  and  publishers  wish  to  express  theii 
appreciation  to  the  following  firms  for  permission 
to  use  the  material  indicated: 

To  Messrs.  G.  P.  Putnam's  Sons  for  "  Why  the 
Sea  is  Salt/'  "  The  Lad  Who  Went  to  the  North 
Wind,"  ''  The  Lad  and  the  Deil,"  and  ''Ananzi 
and  the  Lion,"  by  Sir  George  Webbe  Dasent, 
D.C.L.;  to  the  Macmillan  Company,  New  York, 
for  "The  Grateful  Foxes"  and  "The  Badger'3 
Money,"  by  A.  B.  Mitford;  to  Messrs.  Macmillan 
&  Company,  London,  for  "  The  Origin  of  Rubies," 
by  Rev.  Lai  Behari  Day;  to  Messrs.  Charles  Scrib- 
ner's  Sons  for  "  The  Dun  Horse,"  by  George  Bird 
Grinnell;  to  Messrs.  Little,  Brown  &  Company 
for  "  The  Peasant  Story  of  Napoleon,"  by  Honor6 
de  Balzac;  to  Messrs.  Houghton,  MifHin  &  Com- 
pany for  "  Why  Brother  Bear  Has  No  Tail,"  by 
Joel  Chandler  Harris,  and  for  the  following  selec- 
tions from  "  Sixty  Folk  Tales,  from  Exclusively 
Slavonic  Sources,"  translated  by  A.  H.  Wratislaw? 
M.A.:  — "  Long,  Broad,  and  Sharpsight,"  "  Intel- 
ligence and  Luck,"  "George  and  the  Goat,"  "  The 
Wonderful  Hair,"  "  The  Dragon  and  the  Prince," 
and  "  The  Good  Children." 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 


Introduction  .        .        .        •        .         xi 

CHAPTER 

I.    Hans  in  Luck      ....  3 

From  Grimm's  Fairy  Tales. 
n.     Why  the  Sea  is  Salt  ...         13 

From  *'  Popular  Tales  from  the 

Norse/'    by  Sir   George  Webbe 

Dasent,  D.C.L. 
in.    The  Lad  Who  Went  to  the  North 

Wind 22 

From  "  Popular  Tales  from  the 

Norse,"  by  Sir   George   Webbe 

Dasent,  D.C.L. 
IV.    The  Lad  and  the  Deil        .        .         28 

From  "  Popular  Tales  from  the 

Norse,"   by  Sir   George  Webbe 

Dasent,  D.C.L. 
V.    Ananzi  and  the  Lion  ...         30 

From  "  Popular  Tales  from  the 

Norse,"  by   Sir   George  Webbe 

Dasent,  D.C.L. 
VI.     The  Grateful  Foxes  .         .        .         37 

From  "  Tales  of  Old  Japan,"  by 

A.  B.  Mitford 
Vn.     The  Badger's  Money  .         .         52 

From  "  Tales  of  Old  Japan,"  by 

A.  B.  Mitford 


viii  Contents 

CHAPTER  PAGB 

VIII.    Why  Brother  Bear  Has  no  Tail         6o 
From  "  Nights  with   Uncle   Re- 
mus/' by  Joel  Chandler  Harris. 

IX.    The  Origin  of  Rubies         .        .         66 
From  "  Folk  Tales   of  Bengal/' 
by  Rev.  Lai  Behari  Day. 

X.    Long,  Broad,  and  Sharpsight     .         74 
Translated   from    the  Bohemian 
by  A.  H.   Wratislaw,  M.  A.,  in 
*'  Sixty  Folk  Tales,  from  Exclu- 
sively Slavonic  Sources." 

XI.    Intelligence  and  Luck       .        .        92 
Translated    from  the   Bohemian 
by  A.  H.  Wratislaw,  M.A.,  in 
"  Sixty  Folk  Tales,  from  Exclu- 
sively Slavonic  Sources." 

XII.    George  with  the  Goat       .        .        99 

Translated  from  the  Bohemian 
by  A.  H.  Wratislaw,  M.A.,  in 
*'  Sixty  Folk  Tales,  from  Exclu- 
sively Slavonic  Sources." 

Xni.    The  Wonderful  Hair         .        .       107 
Translated  from  the  Serbian  by 
A.  H.  Wratislaw,  M.  A.,  in  "  Sixty 
Folk  Tales,  from  Exclusively  Sla- 
vonic Sources." 

XrV.    The  Dragon  and  the  Prince       .       112 
Translated   from    the   Serbian 
by  A.  H.  Wratislaw,  M.  A.,  in 
''  Sixty  Folk  Tales,  from  Exclu- 
sively Slavonic  Sources." 


Contents 


IX 


XV.    The  Good  Children 

A  Little  Russian  story  of  Gali- 
cia.  Translated  by  A.  H. 
Wratislaw,  M.  A.,  in  ''  Sixty 
Folk  Tales,  from  Exclusively 
Slavonic  Sources.'' 

XVI.     The  Dun  Horse 

From  '^  Pawnee  Hero  Stories 
and  Folk  Tales,"  by  George 
Bird  Grinnell. 


124 


XVII. 


XVIII. 


XIX. 


XX. 


The  Greedy  Youngster  . 
From    the  Norwegian   tale 
Peter  Christen  Asbjornsen. 


of 


Hans,  Who  Made  the  Princess 
Laugh  .... 

From    the   Norwegian  tale  of 
Peter  Christen  Asbjornsen. 

The  Story  of  Tom  Tim  Tot  . 
An  old  Suffolk  Tale,  given  in  the 
dialect  of  East  Anglia.  From 
''  Tom  Tit  Tot.  An  Essay  on 
Savage  Philosophy  in  Folk 
Tale,"  by  Edward  Clodd. 

The  Peasant  Story  of  Napo- 
leon ..... 
From  *'  The  Country  Doctor," 
by  Honore  de  Balzac.  Trans- 
lated by  Katharine  Prescott 
Wormeley. 


130 


142 


162 


172 


182 


INTRODUCTION 

When  the  traveller  looks  at  Rome  for  the 
first  time  he  does  not  realize  that  there  have 
been  several  cities  on  the  same  piece  of  ground, 
and  that  the  churches  and  palaces  and  other 
great  buildings  he  sees  to-day  rest  on  an  earher 
and  invisible  city  buried  in  dust  beneath 
the  foundations  of  the  Rome  of  the  Twentieth 
Century.  In  like  manner,  and  because  all 
visible  things  on  the  surface  of  the  earth 
have  grown  out  of  older  things  which  have 
ceased  to  be,  the  world  of  habits,  the  ideas, 
customs,  fancies,  and  arts,  in  which  we 
live  is  a  survival  of  a  younger  world  which 
long  ago  disappeared.  When  we  speak  of 
Friday  as  an  unlucky  day,  or  touch  wood  after 
saying  that  we  have  had  good  luck  for  a  long 
time,  or  take  the  trouble  to  look  at  the  new  moon 
over  the  right  shoulder,  or  avoid  crossing  the 
street  while  a  funeral  is  passing,  we  are  recall- 
ing old  superstitions  or  beliefs,  a  vanished 
world  in  which  our  remote  forefathers  lived. 

We  do  not  realize  how  much  of  this  vanished 
xi 


xii  Introduction 

world  still  survives  in  our  language,  our  talk, 
our  books,  our  sculpture  and  pictures.  The 
plays  of  Shakespeare  are  full  of  reference  to  the 
fancies  and  beliefs  of  the  English  people  in 
his  time  or  in  the  times  not  long  before  him. 
If  we  could  understand  all  these  references  as 
we  read,  we  should  find  ourselves  in  a  world 
as  different  from  the  England  of  to-day  as 
England  is  from  Austria,  and  among  a  people 
whose  ideas  and  language  we  should  find  it 
hard  to  understand. 

In  those  early  days  there  were  no  magazines 
or  newspapers,  and  for  the  people  as  contrasted 
with  the  scholars  there  were  no  books.  The 
most  learned  men  were  ignorant  of  things 
which  intelligent  children  know  to-day;  only 
a  very  few  men  and  women  could  read  or 
write;  and  all  kinds  of  beliefs  about  animals, 
birds,  witches,  fairies,  giants,  and  the  magical 
qualities  of  herbs  and  stones  flourished  like 
weeds  in  a  neglected  garden.  There  came  into 
existence  an  immense  mass  of  misinformation 
about  all  manner  of  things;  some  of  it  very 
stupid,  much  of  it  very^  poetic  and  interesting. 
Below  the  region  of  exact  knowledge  accessible 
to  men  of  education,  lay  a  region  of  popular 
fancies,    ideas,    proverbs,    and     superstitions 


Introduction  -xiii 

in  which  the  great  mass  of  men  and  women 
Hved,  and  which  was  a  kind  of  invisible  play- 
ground for  children.  Much  of  the  popular 
belief  about  animals  and  the  world  was  touched 
with  imagination  and  was  full  of  suggestions, 
illustrations,  and  pictorial  figures  which  the 
poets  were  quick  to  use.  When  the  king  says  to 
Cranmer  in  "Henry  VIII'':  ^Xome,  come,  my 
lord,  you'd  spare  your  spoons,"  he  was  thinking 
of  the  old  custom  of  giving  children  at  christen- 
ings silver  or  gilt  spoons  with  handles  shaped 
to  represent  the  figures  of  the  Apostles.  Rich 
people  gave  twelve  of  the  "apostles'  spoons"; 
people  of  more  moderate  means  gave  three  or 
four,  or  only  one  with  the  figure  of  the  saint 
after  whom  the  child  was  named.  On  Lord 
Mayor's  Day  in  London,  which  came  in 
November  and  is  still  celebrated,  though 
shorn  of  much  of  its  ancient  splendour,  the 
Lord  Mayor's  fool,  as  part  of  the  festivities, 
jumped  into  a  great  bowl  of  custard,  and  this 
is  what  Ben  Jonson  had  in  mind  when  he 
wrote: 

"He  may,  perchance,  in  tail  of  a  sheriff's  dinner, 
Skip  with  a  rime  o'  the  table,  from  near  nothing, 
And  take  his  aimain  leap  into  a  custard, 
Shall  make  my  lady  Maydress  and  her  sisters. 
Laugh  all  their  hoods  over  their  shoulders." 


xiv  Introduction 

It  was  once  widely  believed  tliat  a  3tone 
of  magical,  medicinal  qualities  was  set  in  the 
toad's  head,  and  so  Shakespeare  wrote : 

"Sweet  are  the  uses  of  adveraty; 
Which,  like  the  toad,  ugly  and  venomous, 
Wears  yet  a  precious  jewel  in  its  head." 

"A  Midsummer  Night's  Dream"  is  the 
most  wonderful  fairy  story  in  the  world,  but 
Shakespeare  did  not  create  it  out  of  hand; 
he  found  the  fairy  part  of  it  in  the  traditions 
of  the  country  people.  One  of  his  most  in- 
telligent students  says:  "He  founded  his 
elfin  world  on  the  prettiest  of  the  people's 
traditions,  and  has  clothed  it  in  the 
ever-living  flower  of  his  own  exuberant 
fanc}^" 

This  immense  mass  of  belief,  superstition, 
fancy,  is  called  folk-lore  and  is  to  be  found  in  aU 
parts  of  the  world.  These  fancies  or  faiths  or 
superstitions  were  often  distorted  with  stories, 
and  side  by  side  with  folk-lore  grew  up 
the  folk- tales,  of  which  there  are  so  many 
that  a  man  might  spend  his  whole  Hfe  writing 
them  down.  They  were  not  made  as  modern 
stories  are  often  made,  by  men  who  think  out 
carefully  what  they  are  to  say,  arrange  the 


Introduction  xv 

different  parts  so  that  they  go  together  like 
the  parts  of  a  house  or  of  a  machine,  and 
write  them  with  careful  selection  of  words  so 
as  to  make  the  story  vivid  and  interesting. 

The  folk-tales  were  not  written  out;  many  of 
them  grew  out  of  single  incidents  or  little 
inventions  of  fancy,  and  became  longer  and 
larger  as  they  passed  from  one  story-teller 
to  another  and  were  retold  generation  after 
generation. 

Men  love  stories,  and  for  very  good  reasons, 
as  has  been  pointed  out  in  introductions  to 
other  volumes  in  this  series;  and  the  more 
quick  and  original  the  imagination  of  a  race, 
the  more  interesting  and  varied  will  be  its 
stories.  From  the  earhest  times,  long  before 
books  were  made,  the  people  of  many  countries 
were  eagerly  Hstening  to  the  men  and  women 
who  could  tell  thrilling  or  humorous  tales,  as 
in  these  later  days  they  read  the  novels  of  the 
writers  who  know  how  to  tell  a  story  so  as  to 
stir  the  imagination  or  hold  the  attention  and 
make  readers  forget  themselves  and  their 
worries  and  troubles.  In  India  and  Japan,  in 
Russia  and  Roumania,  among  the  Indians  at  the 
foot  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  these  stories 
are  still  told,  not  only  to  children  by  their 


xvl  Introduction 

mothers  and  grandmothers,  but  to  crowds  of 
grown-up  people  by  those  who  have  the  art 
of  making  tales  entertaining;  and  there  are 
still  so  many  of  these  stories  floating  about 
the  v/orld  from  one  person  to  another  that  if 
they  were  written  down  they  w^ould  fill  a  great 
library.  "Until  the  generation  now  lately 
passed  away,"  says  Mr.  Gosse  in  his  intro- 
duction to  that  very  interesting  book,  "Folk 
and  Fairy  Tales"  by  Asbjornsen,  "almost 
the  only  mode  in  which  the  Norwegian  peasant 
killed  time  in  the  leisure  moments  between  his 
daily  labour  and  his  religious  observances,  was 
in  listening  to  stories.  It  was  the  business  of 
old  men  and  women  who  had  reached  the  ex- 
treme Hmit  of  their  working  hours,  to  retain  and 
repeat  these  ancient  legends  in  prose  and  verse, 
and  to  recite  or  sing  them  when  called  to  do 
so."  And  Miss  Hapgood  has  told  us  that  in 
Russia  these  stories  have  not  only  been  handed 
down  wholly  by  word  or  mouth  for  a  thousand 
years,  but  are  flourishing  to-day  and  extending 
into  fresh  fields. 

The  stories  made  by  the  people,  and  told  be- 
fore evening  fires,  or  in  pubhc  places  and  at  the 
gates  of  inns  in  the  Orient,  belong  to  the  ages 
when  books  were  few  and  knowledge  limited. 


Introduction  xvil 

or  to  people  whose  fancy  was  not  hampered  by 
famiUarity  with  or  care  for  facts;  they  are  the 
creations,  as  they  were  the  amusement,  of  men 
and  women  who  were  children  in  knowledge, 
but  were  thinking  deeply  and  often  wisely  of 
what  life  meant  to  them,  and  were  eager  to 
know  and  hear  more  about  themselves,  their 
fellows,  and  the  world.  In  the  earUer  folk- 
stories  one  finds  a  childHke  simpHcity  and 
readiness  to  believe  in  the  marvellous;  and  these 
quaUties  are  found  also  in  the  French  peasant's 
version  of  the  career  of  Napoleon. 

Hamilton  W.  Mabib 


FOLK  TALES 
EVERY  CHILD  SHOULD  KNOW 


HANS  IN  LUCK 

HANS  had  served  his  Master  seven  years, 
and  at  the  end  of  that  time  he  said  to 
him:  "Master,  since  my  time  is  up,  I  should 
like  to  go  home  to  my  mother;  so  give  me  my 
wages,  if  you  please." 

His  Master  repHed,  "You  have  served  me 
truly  and  honestly,  Hans,  and  such  as  your 
service  was,  such  shall  be  your  reward'';  and 
with  these  words  he  gave  him  a  lump  of  gold 
as  big  as  his  head.  Hans  thereupon  took  his 
handkerchief  out  of  his  pocket,  and,  wrapping 
the  gold  up  in  it,  threw  it  over  his  shoulder  and 
set  out  on  the  road  toward  his  native  village. 
As  he  went  along,  carefully  setting  one  foot 
to  the  ground  before  the  other,  a  horseman  came 
in  sight,  trotting  gaily  and  briskly  along  upon  a 
capital  animal.  "Ah,''  said  Hans,  aloud,  "what 
a  fine  thing  that  riding  is !  one  is  seated,  as  it 
were, upon  a  stool,  kicks  against  no  stones,  spares 
one's  shoes, and  gets  along  without  any  trouble!'* 

3 


4  Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Shotdd  Know 

The  Rider,  overhearing  Hans  making  these 
reflections,  stopped  and  said,  "Why,  then,  do 
you  travel  on  foot,  my  fine  fellow?" 

"Because  I  am  forced,''  replied  Hans,  "for 
I  have  got  a  bit  of  a  lump  to  carry  home;  it 
certainly  is  gold,  but  then  I  can't  carry  my 
head  straight,  and  it  hurts  my  shoulder." 

"  If  you  Hke  we  will  exchange,"  said  the  Rider. 
"I  will  give  you  my  horse,  and  you  can  give 
me  your  lump  of  gold." 

"With  all  my  heart,"  cried  Hans;  "but  I 
tell  you  fairly  you  undertake  a  very  heavy 
burden." 

The  man  dismounted,  took  the  gold,  and 
helped  Hans  on  to  the  horse,  and,  giving  him 
the  reins  into  his  hands,  said,  "Now,  when  you 
want  to  go  faster,  you  must  chuckle  with  your 
tongue  and  cry,  ^Gee  up!  gee  up!'  " 

Hans  was  dehghted  indeed  when  he  found 
himself  on  the  top  of  a  horse,  and  riding  along 
so  freely  and  gaily.  After  a  while  he  thought 
he  should  Hke  to  go  rather  quicker,  and  so  he 
cried,  "  Gee  up!  gee  up!  "  as  the  man  had  told 
him.  The  horse  soon  set  off  at  a  hard  trot,  and, 
before  Hans  knew  what  he  was  about,  he 
was  thrown  over  head  and  heels  into  a  ditch 
which  divided  the  fields  from  the  road.    The 


Hans  in  Luck  5 

horse,  having  accomplished  this  feat,  would 
have  bolted  off  if  he  had  not  been  stopped 
by  a  Peasant  who  was  coming  that  way, 
driving  a  cow  before  him.  Hans  soon  picked 
himself  up  on  his  legs,  but  he  was  terribly 
put  out,  and  said  to  the  countryman,  "That 
is  bad  sport,  that  riding,  especially  when  one 
mounts  such  a  beast  as  that,  which  stumbles 
and  throws  one  off  so  as  to  nearly  break  one's 
neck.  I  will  never  ride  on  that  animal  again. 
Commend  me  to  your  cow:  one  may  walk 
behind  her  without  any  discomfort,  and  be- 
sides one  has,  every  day  for  certain,  milk, 
butter,  and  cheese.  Ah!  what  would  I  not 
give  for  such  a  cow!'' 

"Well,"  said  the  Peasant,  "such  an  advan- 
tage you  may  soon  enjoy;  I  will  exchange  my 
cow  for  your  horse." 

To  this  Hans  consented  with  a  thousand 
thanks,  and  the  Peasant,  swinging  himself 
upon  the  horse,  rode  off  in  a  hurry. 

Hans  now  drove  his  cow  off  steadily  before 
him,  thinking  of  his  lucky  bargain  in  this 
wise:  "I  have  a  bit  of  bread,  and  I  can,  ag 
often  as  I  please,  eat  with  it  butter  and  cheese, 
and  when  I  am  thirsty  I  can  milk  my  cow  and 
have  a  draught:  and  what  more  can  I  desire?" 


6         folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

As  soon,  then,  as  he  came  to  an  inn  he  halted, 
and  ate  with  great  satisfaction  all  the  bread 
he  had  brought  with  him  for  his  noonday  and 
evening  meals,  and  washed  it  down  with- a 
glass  of  beer,  to  buy  which  he  spent  his  two 
last  farthings.  This  over,  he  drove  his  cow 
farther,  but  still  in  the  direction  of  his  mother's 
village.  The  heat  meantime  became  more 
and  more  oppressive  as  noontime  approached, 
and  just  then  Hans  came  to  a  common  which 
was  an  hour's  journey  across.  Here  he  got 
into  such  a  state  of  heat  that  his  tongue  clave 
to  the  roof  of  his  mouth,  and  he  thought  to 
himself:  "This  won't  do;  I  will  just  milk  my 
cow,  and  refresh  myself."  Hans,  therefore 
tied  her  to  a  stump  of  a  tree,  and,  having  no 
pail,  placed  his  leathern  cap  below,  and  set 
to  work,  but  not  a  drop  of  milk  could  he  squeeze 
out.  He  had  placed  himself,  too,  very  awk- 
wardly, and  at  last  the  impatient  cow  gave 
him  such  a  kick  on  the  head  that  he  tumbled 
over  on  the  ground,  and  for  a  long  time  knew 
not  where  he  was.  Fortunately,  not  many 
hours  after,  a  Butcher  passed  by,  trundling  a 
young  pig  along  upon  a  wheelbarrow.  "What 
trick  is  this!"  exclaimed  he,  helping  up  poor 
Hans;  and  Hans  told  him  that  all  that  had 


Hans  in  Luck  7 

passed.  The  Butcher  then  handed  him  his 
flask  and  said,  "There,  take  a  drink;  it  will 
revive  you.  Your  cow  might  well  give  no 
milk:  she  is  an  old  beast,  and  worth  nothing 
at  the  best  but  for  the  plough  or  the 
butcher!'' 

"Eh!  eh!''  said  Hans,  pulling  his  hair  over 
his  eyes,  "who  would  have  thought  it?  It  is  all 
very  well  when  one  can  kill  a  beast  hke  that  at 
home,  and  make  a  profit  of  the  flesh;  but  for 
my  part  I  have  no  reHsh  for  cow's  flesh;  it 
is  too  tough  for  me!  Ah!  a  young  pig  Hke 
yours  is  the  thing  that  tastes  something  Uke, 
let  alone  the  sausages!" 

"Well  now,  for  love  of  you,"  said  the  Butch- 
er, "I  will  make  an  exchange,  and  let  you 
have  my  pig  for  your  cow." 

"Heaven  reward  you  for  your  kindness!" 
cried  Hans;  and,  giving  up  the  cow,  he 
imtied  the  pig  from  the  barrow  and  took 
into  his  hands  the  string  with  which  it  was 
tied. 

Hans  walked  on  again,  considering  how 
everything  had  happened  just  as  he  wished, 
and  how  all  his  vexations  had  turned  out  for 
the  best  after  all!  Presently  a  boy  overtook 
him  carrying  a  fine  white  goose  under  his  armj 


8         Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Knois^ 

and  after  they  had  said  "Good-day"  to  each 
other,  Hans  began  to  talk  about  his  luck, 
and  what  profitable  exchanges  he  had  made. 
The  Boy  on  his  part  told  him  that  he  was 
carrying  the  goose  to  a  christening-feast. 
"Just  Hft  it/'  said  he  to  Hans,  holding  it  up 
by  its  wings,  "just  feel  how  heavy  it  is;  why, 
it  has  been  fattened  up  for  the  last  eight  weeks, 
and  whoever  bites  it  when  it  is  cooked  will 
have  to  wipe  the  grease  from  each  side  of  his 
mouth!" 

"Yes,"  said  Hans,  weighing  it  with  ghq 
hand,  "it  is  weighty,  but  my  pig  is  no  trifle 
either." 

While  he  was  speaking  the  Boy  kept  look- 
ing about  on  all  sides,  and  shaking  his  head 
suspiciously,  and  at  length  he  broke  out,  "I 
am  afraid  it  is  not  all  right  about  your  pig. 
In  the  village  through  which  I  have  just 
come,  one  has  been  stolen  out  of  the  sty  of 
the  mayor  himself;  and  I  am  afraid,  very 
much  afraid,  you  have  it  now  in  your  hand! 
They  have  sent  out  several  people,  and  it 
would  be  a  very  bad  job  for  you  if  they  found 
you  with  the  pig;  the  best  thing  you  can  do 
is  to  hide  it  in  some  dark  corner!" 

Honest  Hans  was  thunderstruck,   and  ex* 


Hans  in  Luck  9 

Claimed,  ^'Ah,  Heaven  help  me  in  this  fresh 
trouble!  you  know  the  neighbourhood  better 
than  I  do;  do  you  take  my  pig  and  let  me 
have  your  goose/'  said  he  to  the  boy. 

"I  shall  have  to  hazard  something  at  that 
game/'  rephed  the  Boy,  ''but  still  I  do  not 
wish  to  be  the  cause  of  your  meeting  with 
misfortune;''  and,  so  saying,  he  took  the  rope 
into  his  own  hand,  and  drove  the  pig  off 
quickly  by  a  side-path,  while  Hans,  Hghtened 
of  his  cares,  walked  on  homeward  with  the 
goose  under  his  arm.  "If  I  judge  rightly," 
thought  he  to  himself,  "I  have  gained  even 
by  this  exchange:  first  there  is  a  good  roast; 
then  the  quantity  of  fat  which  will  drip  out 
will  make  goose  broth  for  a  quarter  of  a  year; 
and  then  there  are  fine  white  feathers,  which, 
when  once  I  have  put  into  my  pillow  I  warrant 
I  shall  sleep  without  rocking.  What  pleasure 
my  mother  will  have!" 

As  he  came  to  the  last  village  on  his  road 
there  stood  a  Knife-grinder,  with  his  barrow 
by  the  hedge,  whirUng  his  wheel  round  and 
singing: 

"Scissors  and  razors  and  such-like  I  grind; 
And  gaily  my  rags  are  flying  behind." 


lo       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

Hans  stopped  and  looked  at  him,  and  at  last 
he  said,  "You  appear  to  have  a  good  business, 
if  I  may  judge  by  your  merry  song?'' 

"Yes,"  answered  the  Grinder,  "this  busi- 
ness has  a  golden  bottom!  A  true  knife- 
grinder  is  a  man  who  as  often  as  he  puts  his 
hand  into  his  pocket  feels  money  in  it!  But 
what  a  fine  goose  you  have  got;  where  did 
you  buy  it?'' 

"I  did  not  buy  it  at  all,"  said  Hans,  "but 
took  it  in  exchange  for  my  pig."  "And  the 
pig?"  "I  exchanged  for  my  cow."  "And 
the  cow?"  "I  exchanged  a  horse  for  her." 
"And  the  horse?"  "For  him  I  gave  a  lump 
of  gold  as  big  as  my  head,"  "And  the  gold?" 
"That  was  my  wages  for  a  seven  years'  servi- 
tude." "And  I  see  you  have  known  how  to 
benefit  yourself  each  time,"  said  the  Grinder; 
"but,  could  you  now  manage  that  you  heard 
the  money  rattHng  in  your  pocket  as  you 
walked,     your     fortune    would    be     made." 

"V/ell!  how  shall  I  manage  that?"  asked 
Hans. 

"You  must  become  a  grinder  like  me;  to 
this  trade  nothing  peculiar  belongs  but  a 
grindstone;  the  other  necessaries  find  them- 
selves.    Here  is  one  which  is  a  Httle  worn, 


Hans  in  Luck  ii 

certainly,  and  so  I  will  not  ask  anything  more 
for  it  than  your  goose;  are  you  agreeable?'' 

"How  can  you  ask  me?"  said  Hans;  "why, 
I  shall  be  the  luckiest  man  in  the  world;  hav- 
ing money  as  often  as  I  dip  my  hand  into  my 
pocket,  what  have  I  to  care  about  any  longer?  " 

So  saying,  he  handed  over  the  goose,  and 
received  the  grindstone  in  exchange. 

"Now,"  said  the  Grinder,  picking  up  an 
ordinary  big  flint  stone  which  lay  near,  "now, 
there  you  have  a  capital  stone  upon  which 
only  beat  them  long  enough  and  you  may 
straighten  all  your  old  nails!  Take  it,  and 
use  it  carefully!" 

Hans  took  the  stone  and  walked  on  with  a 
satisfied  heart,  his  eyes  glistening  with  joy. 
"I  must  have  been  bom,"  said  he,  "to  a  heap 
of  luck;  everything  happens  just  as  I  wish, 
as  if  I  were  a  Sunday-child." 

Soon,  however,  having  been  on  his  legs  since 
daybreak,  he  began  to  feel  very  tired,  and  was 
plagued  too  with  hunger,  since  he  had  eaten 
all  his  provision  at  once  in  his  joy  about  the 
cow  bargain.  At  last  he  felt  quite  unable  to 
go  farther,  and  was  forced,  too,  to  halt  every 
minute  for  the  stones  encumbered  him  very 
much.    Just  then  the  thought  overcame  him. 


12       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

what  a  good  thing  it  were  if  he  had  no  need 
to  carry  them  any  longer,  and  at  the  same 
moment  he  came  up  to  a  stream.  Here  he 
resolved  to  rest  and  refresh  himself  with  drink, 
and  so  that  the  stones  might  not  hurt  him  in 
kneehng  he  laid  them  carefully  down  by  his 
side  on  the  bank.  This  done,  he  stooped  down 
to  scoop  up  some  water  in  his  hand,  and  then 
it  happened  that  he  pushed  one  stone  a  little 
too  far,  so  that  both  presently  went  plump 
into  the  water.  Hans,  as  soon  as  he  saw 
them  sinking  to  the  bottom,  jumped  up  for 
joy,  and  then  kneeled  down  and  returned 
thanks,  \\dth  tears  in  his  eyes,  that  so  merci' 
fully,  and  without  any  act  on  his  part,  and  in 
so  nice  a  way,  he  had  been  dehvered  from  the 
heavy  stones,  which  alone  hindered  him  from 
getting  on. 

"So  lucky  as  I  am,"  exclaimed  Hans,  "is 
no  other  man  under  the  sun!" 

Then  with  a  Hght  heart,  and  free  from  every 
burden,  he  leaped  gaily  along  till  he  reached 
his  mother's  house. 


n 

WHY  THE  SEA  IS  SALT 

ONCE  on  a  time,  but  it  was  a  long,  long 
time  ago,  there  were  two  brothers, 
one  rich  and  one  poor.  Now,  one  Christmas 
eve,  the  poor  one  hadn't  so  much  as  a  crumb 
in  the  house,  either  of  meat  or  bread,  so  he 
went  to  his  brother  to  ask  him  for  something 
to  keep  Christmas  with,  in  God's  name.  It 
was  not  the  first  time  his  brother  had  been 
forced  to  help  him,  and  you  may  fancy  he 
wasn't  very  glad  to  see  his  face,  but  he 
said: 

"If  you  will  do  what  I  ask  you  to  do,  I'll 
give  you  a  whole  flitch  of  bacon." 

So  the  poor  brother  said  he  would  do  any* 
thing  and  was  full  of  thanks. 

"Well,  here  is  the  flitch,"  said  the  rich 
brother,  "and  now  go  straight  to  Hell." 

"What  I  have  given  my  word  to  do,  I  must 
stick  to,"  said  the  other;  so  he  took  the  flitch 
and  set  off.     He  walked  the  whole  day,  and 

13 


14       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

at  dusk  he  came  to  a  place  where  he  saw  a 
very  bright  light. 

"Maybe  this  is  the  place,"  said  the  man 
to  himself.  So  he  turned  aside,  and  the  first 
thing  he  saw  was  an  old,  old  man,  with  a  long 
white  beard,  who  stood  in  an  outhouse,  hew- 
ing wood  for  the  Christmas  fire. 

"Good  even,''  said  the  man  with  the  flitch. 

"The  same  to  you;  whither  are  you  going 
so  late?"  said  the  man. 

"Oh!  Fm  going  to  Hell,  if  I  only  knew  the 
right  way  "  answered  the  poor  man. 

"WelJ^  you're  noc  far  wrong,  for  this  is 
Hell,"  said  the  old  man;  "when  you  get 
inside  they  will  be  all  for  buying  your  flitch, 
for  meat  is  scarce  in  Hell;  but,  mind  you 
don't  sell  it  unless  you  get  the  hand-quern 
which  stands  behind  the  door  for  it.  When 
you  come  out,  I'U  teach  you  how  to  han- 
dle the  quern,  for  it's  good  to  grind  almost 
anything." 

So  the  man  with  the  flitch  thanked  the 
other  for  his  good  advice,  and  gave  a  great 
knock  at  the  Devil's  door. 

When  he  got  in,  everything  was  just  as  the 
old  man  had  said.  All  the  devils,  great  and 
small,  came  swarming  up  to  him  like  ants 


Why  the  Sea  is  Salt  15 

round  an  anthill,  and  each  tried  to  outbid  the 
other  for  the  flitch. 

"Well!"  said  the  man,  "by  rights,  my  old 
dame  and  I  ought  to  have  this  flitch  for  our 
Christmas  dinner;  but  since  you  have  all 
set  your  hearts  on  it,  I  suppose  I  must 
give  it  up  to  you;  but  if  I  sell  it  at  all,  I'll 
have  for  it  the  quern  behind  the  door 
yonder.'' 

At  first  the  Devil  wouldn't  hear  of  such  a 
bargain,  and  chaffed  and  haggled  with  the 
man;  but  he  stuck  to  what  he  said,  and  at 
last  the  Devil  had  to  part  with  his  quern. 
When  the  man  got  out  into  the  yard,  he  asked 
the  old  woodcutter  how  he  was  to  handle 
the  quern;  and  after  he  had  learned  how  to 
use  it,  he  thanked  the  old  man  and  went  off 
home  as  fast  as  he  could,  but  still  the  clock  had 
struck  twelve  on  Christmas  eve  before  he 
reached  his  own  door. 

"WHierever  in  the  world  have  you  been?" 
said  his  old  dame;  "here  have  I  sat  hour  after 
hour  waiting  and  watching,  without  so  much 
as  two  sticks  to  lay  together  under  the  Christ- 
mas brose." 

"Oh!"  said  the  man,  "I  couldn't  get  back 
before,  for  I  had  to  go  a  long  way  first  for  one 


1 6       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

thing,  and  then  for  another;  but  now  you 
shall  see  what  you  shall  see." 

So  he  put  the  quern  on  the  table,  and  bade 
it  first  of  all  grind  Ughts,  then  a  table-cloth, 
then  meat,  then  ale,  and  so  on  till  they  had 
got  everything  that  was  nice  for  Christmas 
fare.  He  had  only  to  speak  the  word,  and  the 
quern  ground  out  what  he  wanted.  The  old 
dame  stood  by  blessing  her  stars,  and  kept 
on  asking  where  he  had  got  this  wonderful 
quern,  but  he  wouldn't  tell  her. 

"It's  all  one  where  I  got  it  from;  you  see 
the  quern  is  a  good  one,  and  the  mill-stream 
never  freezes,  that's  enough." 

So  he  ground  meat  and  drink  and  dainties 
enough  to  last  out  till  Twelfth  Day,  and  on 
the  third  day  he  asked  all  his  friends  and  kin 
to  his  house,  and  gave  a  great  feast.  Now, 
when  his  rich  brother  saw  all  that  was  on  the 
table,  and  all  that  was  behind  in  the  larder, 
he  grew  quite  spiteful  and  wild,  for  he 
couldn't  bear  that  his  brother  should  have 
anything. 

"  'Twas  only  on  Christmas  eve,"  he  said 
to  the  rest,  ^^he  was  in  such  straits  that  he 
came  and  asked  for  a  morsel  of  food  in  God's 
name,  and  now  he  gives  a  feast  as  if  he  were 


Why  the  Sea  is  Salt  17 

count  or  king;"  and  he  turned  to  his  brother 
and  said: 

"But  whence,  in  Hell's  name,  have  you  got 
all  this  wealth?'' 

"From  behind  the  door,"  answered  the 
owner  of  the  quern,  for  he  didn't  care  to  let 
the  cat  out  of  the  bag.  But  later  on  in  the 
evening,  when  he  had  got  a  drop  too  much, 
he  could  keep  his  secret  no  longer,  and  brought 
out  the  quern  and  said : 

"There,  you  see  what  has  gotten  me  all 
this  wealth;"  and  so  he  made  the  quern  grind 
all  kind  of  things.  When  his  brother  saw  it, 
he  set  his  heart  on  having  the  quern,  and, 
after  a  deal  of  coaxing,  he  got  it;  but  he  had 
to  pay  three  hundred  dollars  for  it,  and  his 
brother  bargained  to  keep  it  till  hay-harvest, 
for  he  thought,  if  I  keep  it  till  then,  I  can 
make  it  grind  meat  and  drink  that  will  last 
for  years.  So  you  may  fancy  the  quern  didn't 
grow  rusty  for  want  of  work,  and  when  hay- 
harvest  came,  the  rich  brother  got  it,  but  the 
other  took  care  not  to  teach  him  how  to  han- 
dle it. 

It  was  evening  when  the  rich  brother  got 
the  quern  home,  and  the  next  morning  he  told 
his  wife  to  go  out  into  the  hay-field  and  toss, 


1 8       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

while  the  mowers  cut  the  grass,  and  he  would 
stay  at  home  and  get  the  dinner  ready.  So, 
when  dinner-time  drew  near,  he  put  the  quern 
on  the  kitchen  table  and  said: 

^^  Grind  herrings  and  broth,  and  grind  them 
good  and  fast.'' 

So  the  quern  began  to  grind  herrings  and 
broth;  first  of  all,  all  the  dishes  full,  then  all 
the  tubs  full,  and  so  on  till  the  kitchen  floor 
was  quite  covered.  Then  the  man  twisted 
and  twirled  at  the  quern  to  get  it  to  stop,  but 
for  all  his  twisting  and  fingering  the  quern 
went  on  grinding,  and  in  a  little  while  the 
broth  rose  so  high  that  the  man  was  like  to 
drown.  So  he  threw  open  the  kitchen  door 
and  ran  into  the  parlour,  but  it  wasn't  long 
before  the  quern  had  ground  the  parlour  full 
too,  and  it  was  only  at  the  risk  of  his  Hfe  that 
the  man  could  get  hold  of  the  latch  of  the 
house  door  through  the  stream  of  broth. 
When  he  got  the  door  open,  he  ran  out  and  set 
off  down  the  road,  with  the  stream  of  herrings 
and  broth  at  his  heels,  roaring  like  a  water- 
fall over  the  whole  farm. 

Now,  his  old  dame,  who  was  in  the  field 
tossing  hay,  thought  it  a  long  time  to  dinner, 
and  at  last  she  said: 


Why  the  Sea  is  Salt  19 

"Well!  though  the  master  doesn't  call  us 
home,  we  may  as  well  go.  Maybe  he  finds 
it  hard  work  to  boil  the  broth,  and  will  be 
glad  of  my  help.'' 

The  men  were  willing  enough,  so  they 
sauntered  homeward;  but  just  as  they  had 
got  a  little  way  up  the  hill,  what  should  they 
meet  but  herrings,  and  broth,  and  bread,  all 
running  and  dashing,  and  splashing  together 
in  a  stream,  and  the  master  himself  running 
before  them  for  his  life,  and  as  he  passed  them 
he  bawled  out:  ''Would  to  heaven  each  of 
you  had  a  hundred  throats!  but  take  care 
you're  not  drowned  in  the  broth." 

Away  he  went,  as  though  the  Evil  One  were 
at  his  heels,  to  his  brother's  house,  and  begged 
him  for  God's  sake  to  take  back  the  quern 
that  instant;  for,  said  he: 

''If  it  grinds  only  one  hour  more,  the  whole 
parish  will  be  swallowed  up  by  herrings  and 
broth." 

But  his  brother  wouldn't  hear  of  taking 
it  back  till  the  other  paid  him  down  three 
hundred  dollars  more. 

So  the  poor  brother  got  both  the  money  and 
the  quern,  and  it  wasn't  long  before  he  set  up 
a  farmhouse  far  finer  than  the  one  in  which 


20       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

his  brother  lived,  and  with  the  quern  he  ground 
so  much  gold  that  he  covered  it  with  plates 
of  gold;  and  as  the  farm  lay  by  the  sea-side, 
the  golden  house  gleamed  and  glistened  far 
away  over  the  sea.  All  who  sailed  by,  put 
ashore  to  see  the  rich  man  in  the  golden  house, 
and  to  see  the  wonderful  quern,  the  fame  of 
which  spread  far  and  wide,  till  there  was 
nobody  who  hadn't  heard  tell  of  it. 

So  one  day  there  came  a  skipper  who  wanted 
to  see  the  quern;  and  the  first  thing  he  asked 
was  if  it  could  grind  salt. 

"Grind  salt!"  said  the  o^vner;  "I  should 
just  think  it  could.     It  can  grind  anything.'' 

When  the  skipper  heard  that,  he  said  he 
must  have  the  quern,  cost  what  it  w^ould;  for 
if  he  only  had  it,  he  thought  he  should  be 
rid  of  his  long  voyages  across  stormy  seas  for 
a  lading  of  salt.  Well,  at  first  the  man  w^ouldn't 
hear  of  parting  with  the  quern;  but  the  skipper 
begged  and  prayed  so  hard  that  at  last  he  let 
him  have  it,  but  he  had  to  pay  many,  many 
thousand  dollars  for  it.  Now,  when  the 
skipper  had  got  the  quern  on  his  back,  he 
soon  made  off  with  it,  for  he  was  afraid  lest 
the  man  should  change  his  mind;  so  he  had 
no  time  to  ask  how  to  handle  the  quern,  but 


Why  the  Sea  is  Salt  21 

got  on  board  his  ship  as  fast  as  he  could,  and 
set  sail.  When  he  had  sailed  a  good  way 
off,  he  brought  the  quern  on  deck  and  said: 
"Grind  salt,  and  grind  both  good  and  fast.'^ 
Well,  the  quern  began  to  grind  salt  so  that 
it  poured  out  like  water;  and  when  the  skipper 
had  got  the  ship  full,  he  wished  to  stop  the 
quern,  but  whichever  way  he  turned  it,  and 
however  much  he  tried,  it  was  no  good;  the 
quern  kept  grinding  on,  and  the  heap  of  salt 
grew  higher  and  higher,  and  at  last  down 
sunk  the  ship. 

There  lies  the  quern  at  the  bottom  of  the 
sea,  and  grinds  away  at  this  very  day,  and 
that's  why  the  sea  is  salt. 


Ill 


THE  LAD  WHO  WENT  TO  THE  NORTH 
WIND 

ONCE  on  a  time  there  was  an  old  widow 
who  had  one  son  and,  as  she  was  poorly 
and  weak,  her  son  had  to  go  up  into  the  safe 
to  fetch  meal  for  cooking;  but  when  he  got 
outside  the  safe,  and  was  just  going  down  the 
steps,  there  came  the  North  Wind,  puffing 
and  blowing,  caught  up  the  meal,  and  so  away 
with  it  through  the  air.  Then  the  lad  went 
back  into  the  safe  for  more;  but  when  he 
came  out  again  on  the  steps,  if  the  North  Wind 
didn't  come  again  and  carry  off  the  meal  with 
a  puff;  and  more  than  that,  he  did  so  the 
third  time.  At  tliis  the  lad  got  very  angry; 
and  as  he  thought  it  hard  that  the  North 
Wind  should  behave  so,  he  thought  he'd  jusf 
look  him  up,  and  ask  him  to  give  up  his  meal. 
So  off  he  went,  but  the  way  was  long,  and 
he  walked  and  walked;  but  at  last  he  came  to 
the  North  Wind's  house. 

22 


The  Lad  Who  Went  to  the  North  Wind      23 

"Good  day!''  said  the  lad,  and  "tliank 
you  for  coming  to  see  us  yesterday.'' 

"Good  day!"  answered  the  North  Wind, 
for  his  voice  was  loud  and  gruff,  "and  thanks 

FOR  COMING  TO  SEE  ME.  WhAT  DO  YOU  WANT?" 

"Oh!"  answered  the  lad,  "I  only  wished  to 
ask  you  to  be  so  good  as  to  let  me  have  back 
that  meal  you  took  from  me  on  the  safe  steps, 
for  we  haven't  much  to  live  on;  and  if  you're 
to  go  on  snapping  up  the  morsel  we  have 
there'll  be  nothing  for  it  but  to  starve." 

"I  haven't  got  your  meal,"  said  the  North 
Wind;  "but  if  you  are  in  such  need,  I'll 
give  you  a  cloth  which  will  get  you  every- 
thing you  want,  if  you  only  say,  Xloth, 
spread  yourself,  and  serve  up  all  kinds  of  good 
dishes!'" 

With  this  the  lad  was  well  content.  But,  as 
the  way  was  so  long  he  couldn't  get  home  in 
one  day,  he  turned  into  an  inn  on  the  way; 
and  when  they  were  going  to  sit  down  to  sup- 
per, he  laid  the  cloth  on  a  table  which  stood 
in  the  corner  and  said: 

"Cloth  spread  yourself,  and  serve  up  all 
kinds  of  good  dishes." 

He  had  scarce  said  so  before  the  cloth  did 
as  it  was  bid;  and  all  who  stood  by  thought 


24       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

it  a  fine  thing,  but  most  of  all  the  landlady. 
So,  when  all  were  fast  asleep,  at  dead  of  night, 
she  took  the  lad's  cloth,  and  put  another  in 
its  stead,  just  like  the  one  he  had  got  from 
the  North  Wind,  but  which  couldn't  so  much 
as  serve  up  a  bit  of  dry  bread. 

So,  when  the  lad  woke,  he  took  his  cloth 
and  went  off  with  it,  and  that  day  he  got  home 
to  his  mother. 

"Now,"  said  he,  ''I've  been  to  the  North 
Wind's  house,  and  a  good  fellow  he  is,  for  he 
gave  me  this  cloth,  and  when  I  only  say  to 
it,  'Cloth,  spread  yourself,  and  serve  up  all 
kinds  of  good  dishes,'  I  get  any  sort  of  food 
I  please." 

"All  very  true,  I  dare  say,"  said  his  mother; 
"but  seeing  is  believing,  and  I  shan't  believe 
it  till  I  see  it." 

So  the  lad  made  haste,  drew  out  a  table, 
laid  the  cloth  on  it,  and  said: 

"Cloth,  spread  yourself,  and  serve  all  up 
kinds  of  good  dishes." 

But  never  a  bit  of  dry  bread  did  the  cloth 
serve  up. 

"WeU,"  said  the  lad,  "there's  no  help  for 
it  but  to  go  to  the  North  Wind  again;"  and 
away  he  went. 


The  Lad  Who  Went  to  the  North  Wind     25 

So  he  came  to  where  the  North  Wind  lived 
late  in  the  afternoon. 

"Good  evening!"  said  the  lad. 

"Good  evening,"  said  the  North  Wind. 

"I  want  my  rights  for  that  meal  of  ours 
which  you  took,"  said  the  lad;  "for  as  for  that 
cloth  I  got,  it  isn't  worth  a  penny." 

"I've  got  no  meal,"  said  the  North  Wind; 
"but  yonder  you  have  a  ram  which  coins 
nothing  but  golden  ducats  as  soon  as  you  say 
to   it: 

"^Ram,  ram!  make  money!'" 

So  the  lad  thought  this  a  fine  thing  but  as 
it  was  too  far  to  get  home  that  day,  he  turned 
in  for  the  night  to  the  same  inn  where  he 
had  slept  before. 

Before  he  called  for  anything,  he  tried  the 
truth  of  what  the  North  Wind  had  said  of 
the  ram,  and  found  it  all  right;  but  when  the 
landlord  saw  that,  he  thought  it  was  a  famous 
ram,  and,  when  the  lad  had  fallen  asleep,  he 
took  another  which  couldn't  coin  gold  ducats, 
and  changed  the  two. 

Next  morning  off  went  the  lad;  and  when  he 
got  home  to  his  mother  he  said: 

"After  all,  the  North  Wind  is  a  jolly  fellow; 
for  now  he  has  given  me  a  ram  which  can  coin 


26       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

golden  ducats  if  I  only  say,  *Ram,  ram!  make 
money!"' 

"All  very  true,  I  dare  say/'  said  his  mother; 
"but  I  shan't  believe  any  such  stuff  until 
I  see  the  ducats  made." 

"Ram,  ram!  make  money!"  said  the  lad; 
but  if  the  ram  made  anything  it  wasn't  money. 

So  the  lad  went  back  again  to  the  North 
Wind  and  blew  him  up,  and  said  the  ram  was 
worth  nothing,  and  he  must  have  his  rights 
for  the  meal. 

"Well,"  said  the  North  Wind;  "I've  noth^ 
ing  else  to  give  you  but  that  old  stick  in  the 
comer  yonder;  but  it's  a  stick  of  that  kind 
that  if  you  say: 

"^ Stick,  stick!  lay  on!'  it  lays  on  till  you 
say: 

"'Stick,  stick!  now  stop!'" 

So,  as  the  way  was  long,  the  lad  turned  in 
this  night  too  to  the  landlord;  but  as  he  could 
pretty  well  guess  how  things  stood  as  to  the 
cloth  and  the  ram,  he  lay  down  at  once  on  the 
bench  and  began  to  snore,  as  if  he  were  asleep. 

Now  the  landlord,  who  easily  saw  that  the 
stick  must  be  worth  something,  hunted  up 
one  which  was  Hke  it,  and  when  he  heard  the 
lad  snore,  was  going  to  change  the  tv/o,  but 


The  Lad  Who  Went  to  the  North  Wind      27 

just  as  the  landlord  was  about  to  take  it  the 
lad  bawled  out: 

"Stick,  stick!  lay  on!'' 

So  the  stick  began  to  beat  the  landlord, 
till  he  jumped  over  chairs,  and  tables,  and 
benches,  and  yelled  and  roared: 

"Oh  my!  oh  my!  bid  the  stick  be  still,  else 
it  will  beat  me  to  death,  and  you  shall  have 
back  both  your  cloth  and  your  ram." 

Wlien  the  lad  thought  the  landlord  had  got 
enough,  he  said: 

"Stick,  stick  1  now  stop!" 

Then  he  took  the  cloth  and  put  it  into  his 
pocket,  and  went  home  with  his  stick  in  his 
hand,  leading  the  ram  by  a  cord  round  its 
horns;  and  so  he  got  his  rights  for  the  meal 
he  had  lost. 


IV 

THE  LAD  AND  THE  DEIL 

ONCE  on  a  time  there  was  a  lad  who  was 
walking  along  a  road  cracking  nuts, 
so  he  found  one  that  was  worm-eaten,  and 
just  at  that  very  moment  he  met  the 
Deil. 

**Is  it  true,  now,"  said  the  lad,  "what  they 
say,  that  the  Deil  can  make  himself  as  small 
as  he  chooses,  and  thrust  himself  on  through 
a  pinhole?" 

"Yes,  it  is,"  said  the  Deil. 

"Oh!  it  is,  is  it?  then  let  me  see  you  do  it, 
and  just  creep  into  this  nut,"  said  the  lad. 

So  the  Deil  did  it. 

Now,  when  he  had  crept  well  into  it  through 
the  worm's  hole,  the  lad  stopped  it  up  with 
a  pin. 

"Now,  IVe  got  you  safe,"  he  said,  and  put 
the  nut  into  his  pocket. 

So  when  he  had  walked  on  a  bit,  he  came 
to  a  smithy,  and  he  turned  in  and  asked  the 

28 


TJie  Lad  and  the  Deil  29 

smith  if  he'd  be  good  enough  to  crack  that 
nut  for  him. 

"Ay,  that'll  be  an  easy  job/'  said  the  smith, 
and  took  his  smallest  hammer,  laid  the  nut 
on  the  anvil,  and  gave  it  a  blow,  but  it  wouldn't 
break. 

So  he  took  another  hammer  a  little  bigger, 
but  that  wasn't  heavy  enough  either. 

Then  he  took  one  bigger  still,  but  it  was 
still  the  same  story;  and  so  the  smith  got 
wroth,  and  grasped  his  great  sledge-hammer. 

"Now,  I'll  crack  you  to  bits,"  he  said,  and 
let  drive  at  the  nut  with  all  his  might  and  main. 
And  so  the  nut  flew  to  pieces  with  a  bang  that 
blew  off  half  the  roof  of  the  smithy,  and  the 
whole  house  creaked  and  groaned  as  though 
it  were  ready  to  fall. 

"Why!  if  I  don't  think  the  Deil  must  have 
been  in  that  nut,"  said  the  smith. 

"So  he  was;  you're  quite  right,"  said  the 
lad,  as  he  went  away  laughing. 


V 
ANANZI  AND  THE  LION 

ONCE  on  a  time  Ananzi  planned  a  scheme. 
He  went  to  town  and  bought  ever  so 
many  firkins  of  fat,  and  ever  so  many  sacks, 
and  ever  so  many  balls  of  string,  and  a  very 
big  frying  pan,  then  he  went  to  the  bay  and 
blew  a  shell,  and  called  the  Head-fish  in  the 
sea,  "Green  Eel,"  to  him.  Then  he  said  to 
the  fish,  "The  King  sends  me  to  tell  you 
that  you  must  bring  all  the  fish  on  shore,  for 
he  wants  to  give  them  new  life." 

So  "Green  Eel"  said  he  would,  and  went 
to  call  them.  Meanwhile  Ananzi  lighted  a 
fire,  and  took  out  some  of  the  fat,  and  got 
his  frying  pan  ready,  and  as  fast  as  the  fish 
came  out  of  the  water  he  caught  them  and 
put  them  into  the  frying  pan,  and  so  he  did 
with  all  of  them  until  he  got  to  the  Head-fish, 
who  was  so  slippery  that  he  couldn't  hold 
him,  and  he  got  back  again  into  the  water. 

When  Ananzi  had  fried  all  the  fish,  he  put 


Ananzi  and  the  Lion  31 

them  into  the  sacks,  and  took  the  sacks  on 
his  back,  and  set  off  to  the  mountains.  He 
had  not  gone  very  far  when  he  met  Lion,  and 
Lion  said  to  him: 

"Well,  brother  Ananzi,  where  have  you 
been?     I  have  not  seen  you  a  long  time.'' 

Ananzi  said,  ''I  have  been  travelhng  about." 

'^But  what  have  you  got  there?"  said  the 
Lion. 

"Oh!  I  have  got  my  mother's  bones  —  she 
has  been  dead  these  forty-eleven  years,  and 
they  say  I  must  not  keep  her  here,  so  I  am 
taking  her  up  into  the  middle  of  the  mountains 
to  bury  her." 

Then  they  parted.  After  he  had  gone  a 
little  way,  the  Lion  said:  "I  know  that  Ananzi 
is  a  great  rogue;  I  dare  say  he  has  got  some- 
thing  there  that  he  doesn't  want  me  to  see, 
and  I  will  just  follow  him";  but  he  took  care 
not  to  let  Ananzi  see  him. 

Now,  when  Ananzi  got  into  the  wood,  he 
set  his  sacks  down,  and  took  one  fish  out  and 
began  to  eat;  then  a  fly  came,  and  Ananzi 
said,  "I  cannot  eat  any  more,  for  there  is 
some  one  near;"  so  he  tied  the  sack  up,  and 
went  on  farther  into  the  mountains,  where 
he  set  his  sacks  down,  and  took  out  two  fish 


32       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

which  he  ate;  and  no  fly  came.  He  said, 
*' There  is  no  one  near;"  so  he  took  out  more 
fish.  But  when  he  had  eaten  about  half  a 
dozen  the  Lion  came  up  and  said: 

"Well,  brother  Ananzi,  a  pretty  tale  you 
have  told  me.'' 

'^Oh!  brother  Lion,  I  am  so  glad  you  have 
come;  never  mind  what  tale  I  have  told  you, 
but  come  and  sit  down  —  it  was  only  my 
fun.'' 

So  Lion  sat  down  and  began  to  eat;  but 
before  Ananzi  had  eaten  two  fish.  Lion  had 
emptied  one  of  the  sacks.  Then  said  Ananzi 
to  himself: 

"Greedy  fellow,  eating  up  all  my  fish." 

"What  do  you  say,  sir?" 

"I  only  said  you  do  not  eat  haK  fast  enough,'* 
for  he  was  afraid  the  Lion  would  eat  him  up. 

Then  they  went  on  eating,  but  Ananzi 
wanted  to  revenge  himself,  and  he  said  to  the 
Lion,  "Which  of  us  do  you  think  is  the 
stronger?" 

The  Lion  said,  "Why,  I  am,  of  course." 

Then  Ananzi  said,  "We  will  tie  one  another 
to  the  tree,  and  we  shall  see  which  is  the 
stronger." 

Now  they  agreed  that  the  Lion  should  tie 


Ananzi  and  the  Lion  33 

Ananzi  first,  and  he  tied  him  with  some  very 
fine  string,  and  did  not  tie  him  tight.  Ananzi 
twisted  himself  about  two  or  three  times,  and 
the  string  broke. 

Then  it  was  Ananzi' s  turn  to  tie  the  Lion, 
and  he  took  some  very  strong  cord.  The 
Lion  said,  ^^You  must  not  tie  me  tight,  for 
I  did  not  tie  you  tight.''  And  Ananzi  said, 
"Oh!  no,  to  be  sure,  I  will  not.''  But  he  tied 
him  as  tight  as  ever  he  could,  and  then  told  him 
to  try  and  get  loose. 

The  Lion  tried  and  tried  in  vain  —  he  could 
not  get  loose.  Then  Ananzi  thought,  now  is 
my  chance;  so  he  got  a  big  stick  and  beat 
him,  and  then  went  away  and  left  him,  for  he 
was  afraid  to  loose  him  lest  he  should  kill 
him. 

Now  there  was  a  woman  called  Miss  Nancy, 
who  was  going  out  one  morning  to  get  some 
"callalou"  (spinach)  in  the  wood,  and  as  she 
was  going  she  heard  some  one  say,  "Good 
morning,  Miss  Nancy!"  She  could  not  tell 
who  spoke  to  her,  but  she  looked  where  the 
voice  came  from,  and  saw  the  Lion  tied  to  the 
tree? 

"Good  morning,  Mr.  Lion,  what  are  you 
doing  there?" 


34       Folk  TaUb  Every  Child  Should  Know 

He  said,  "It  is  all  that  fellow  Ananzi  who 
has  tied  me  to  the  tree,  but  will  you  loose 
me?" 

But  she  said,  ''No,  for  I  am  afraid,  if  I  do, 
you  will  kill  me."  But  he  gave  her  his  word 
he  would  not;  still  she  could  not  trust  him; 
but  he  begged  her  again  and  again,  and 
said: 

"Well,  if  I  do  try  to  eat  you,  I  hope  all  the 
trees  will  cry  out  shame  upon  me." 

So  at  last  she  consented;  but  she  had  no 
sooner  loosed  him,  than  he  came  up  to  her  to 
eat  her,  for  he  had  been  so  many  days  with- 
out food  that  he  was  quite  ravenous,  but 
the  trees  immediately  cried  out,  "Shame," 
and  so  he  could  not  eat  her.  Then  she  went 
away  as  fast  as  she  could,  and  the  Lion  found 
his  way  home. 

When  Lion  got  home  he  told  his  wife  and 
children  all  that  happened  to  him,  and  how 
Miss  Nancy  had  saved  his  Hfe,  so  they  said 
they  would  have  a  great  dinner,  and  ask  Miss 
Nancy.  Now  when  Ananzi  heard  of  it,  he 
wanted  to  go  to  the  dinner,  so  he  went  to  Miss 
Nancy,  and  said  she  must  take  him  with  her 
as  her  child,  but  she  said,  "No."  Then  he 
said,  "I  can  turn  myself  into  quite  a  little  child 


Ananzi  and  the  Lion  35 

and  then  you  can  take  me,"  and  at  last  she  said, 
"Yes";  and  he  told  her,  when  she  was  asked 
what  pap  her  baby  ate,  she  must  be  sure  to 
tell  them  it  did  not  eat  pap,  but  the  same  food 
as  every  one  else;  and  so  they  went,  and  had 
a  very  good  dinner,  and  set  off  home  again  — 
but  somehow  one  of  the  Lion's  sons  fancied 
that  all  was  not  right,  and  he  told  his  fathei 
he  was  sure  it  was  Ananzi,  and  the  Lion  set 
out  after  him. 

Now  as  they  were  going  along,  before  the 
Lion  got  up  to  them,  Ananzi  begged  Miss 
Nancy  to  put  him  down,  that  he  might  run, 
which  he  did,  and  he  got  away  and  ran  along 
the  wood,  and  the  Lion  ran  after  him.  When 
he  found  the  Lion  was  overtaking  him,  he 
turned  himself  into  an  old  man  with  a  bundle 
of  wood  on  his  head  —  and  when  the  Lion 
got  up  to  him,  he  said,  "Good  morning,  Mr. 
Lion,"  and  the  Lion  said,  "Good  morning, 
old  gentleman." 

Then  the  old  man  said,  "What  are  you 
after  now?"  and  the  Lion  asked  if  he  had  seen 
Ananzi  pass  that  way,  but  the  old  man  said, 
"No,  that  fellow  Ananzi  is  always  meddling 
with  some  one;  what  mischief  has  he  been 
up  to  now?" 


2,6       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

Then  the  Lion  told  him,  but  the  old  man 
said  it  was  no  use  to  follow  him  any  more, 
for  he  would  never  catch  him,  and  so  the  Lion 
wished  him  good-day,  and  turned  and  went 
home  again. 


VI 

THE  GRATEFUL  FOXES 

ONE  fine  spring  day  two  friends  went 
out  to  a  moor  to  gather  fern,  attended 
by  a  boy  with  a  bottle  of  wine  and  a  box  of 
provisions.  As  they  were  straying  about, 
they  saw  at  the  foot  of  a  hill  two  foxes  that  had 
brought  out  their  cub  to  play;  and  whilst  they 
looked  on,  struck  by  the  strangeness  of  the 
sight,  three  children  came  up  from  a  neigh- 
bouring village  with  baskets  in  their  hands,  on 
the  same  errand  as  themselves.  As  soon  as 
the  children  saw  the  foxes,  they  picked  up  a 
bamboo  stick  and  took  the  creatures  stealthily 
in  the  rear;  and  when  the  old  foxes  took  to 
flight,  they  surrounded  them  and  beat  them 
with  the  stick,  so  that  they  ran  away  as  fast 
as  their  legs  could  carry  them;  but  two  of 
the  boys  held  down  the  cub,  and,  seizing  it 
by  the  scruff  of  the  neck,  went  off  in  high 
glee. 

The  two  friends  were  looking  on  all  the  while, 

37 


38       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

and  one  of  them,  raising  his  voice,  shouted 
out,  "Hallo!  you  boys!  what  are  you  doing 
with  that  fox?'' 

The  eldest  of  the  boys  repHed,  "We're 
going  to  take  him  home  and  sell  him  to  a 
young  man  in  our  village.  He'll  buy  him, 
and  then  he'll  boil  him  in  a  pot  and  eat 
him." 

"Well,"  replied  the  other,  after  consider- 
ing the  matter  attentively,  "I  suppose  it's 
all  the  same  to  you  whom  you  sell  him  to. 
You'd  better  let  me  have  him." 

"Oh,  but  the  young  man  from  our  village 
promised  us  a  good  sum  if  we  could  find  a 
fox,  and  got  us  to  come  out  to  the  hills  and 
catch  one;  and  so  we  can't  sell  him  to  you 
at  any  price." 

"Well,  I  suppose  it  cannot  be  helped,  then; 
but  how  much  would  the  young  man  give  you 
for  the  cub?" 

"Oh,  he'll  give  us  three  hundred  cash  at 
least." 

"Then    I'll    give    you    half    a    bu;*    and 

*  Bu.  This  coin  is  generally  called  by  foreigners  "ichibu," 
which  means  "one  bu."  To  talk  of  "a  hundred  ichihus"  is  as 
though  a  Japanese  were  to  say  "a  hundred  one  shillings.'*  Four 
bus  make  a  riyo,  or  ounce;  and  any  sum  above  three  bus  is  spoken 
of  as  so  many  riyos  and  bus  —  as  loi  riyos  and  three  bus  equal 
407  bus.     The  bu  is  worth  about  15.  4,d. 


The  Grateful  Foxes  39 

so  you'll  gain  five  hundred  cash  by  the 
transaction." 

"Oh,  we'll  sell  him  for  that,  sir.  How 
shall  we  hand  him  over  to  you?  " 

"Just  tie  him  up  here,"  said  the  other; 
and  so  he  made  fast  the  cub  round  the  neck 
with  the  string  of  the  napkin  in  which  the 
luncheon-box  was  wrapped,  and  gave  half 
a  bu  to  the  three  boys,  who  ran  away  delighted. 

The  man's  friend,  upon  this,  said  to  him: 
"Well,  certainly  you  have  got  queer  tastes. 
What  on  earth  are  you  going  to  keep  the  fox 
for?" 

"How  very  unkind  of  you  to  speak  of  my 
tastes  like  that.  If  we  had  not  interfered 
just  now,  the  fox's  cub  would  have  lost  its 
Hfe.  If  we  had  not  seen  the  affair,  there 
would  have  been  no  help  for  it.  How  could 
I  stand  by  and  see  life  taken?  It  was  but  a 
little  I  spent  —  only  half  a  bu  —  to  save  the 
cub,  but  had  it  cost  a  fortune  I  should  not 
have  grudged  it.  I  thought  you  were  intimate 
enough  with  me  to  know  my  heart;  but  to-day 
you  have  accused  me  of  being  eccentric,  and 
I  see  how  mistaken  I  have  been  in  you.  How- 
ever, our  friendship  shall  cease  from  this 
day  forth." 


40       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

And  when  he  had  said  this  with  a  great  deal 
of  firmness,  the  other,  retiring  backward 
and  bowing  with  his  hands  on  his  knees, 
replied: 

"Indeed,  indeed,  I  am  filled  with  admira- 
tion at  the  goodness  of  your  heart.  When  I 
hear  you  speak  thus,  I  feel  more  than  ever 
how  great  is  the  love  I  bear  you.  I  thought 
that  you  might  wish  to  use  the  cub  as  a  sort 
of  decoy  to  lead  the  old  ones  to  you,  that  you 
might  pray  them  to  bring  prosperity  and 
virtue  to  your  house.  When  I  called  you 
eccentric  just  now,  I  was  but  trying 
your  heart,  because  I  had  some  suspicions 
of  you;  and  now  I  am  truly  ashamed  of 
myself. '^ 

And  as  he  spoke,  still  bowing,  the  other 
replied:  "Really!  was  that  indeed  your  thought? 
Then  I  pray  you  to  forgive  me  for  my  violent 
language.'^ 

When  the  two  friends  had  thus  become 
reconciled,  they  examined  the  cub,  and  saw 
that  it  had  a  slight  wound  in  its  foot,  and 
could  not  walk;  and  while  they  were  think- 
ing what  they  should  do,  they  spied  out  the 
herb  called  "Doctor's  Nakase,''  which  was  just 
sprouting;  so  they  rolled  up  a  little  of  it  in 


The  Grateful  Foxes  41 

their  fingers  and  applied  it  to  the  part.  Then 
they  pulled  out  some  boiled  rice  from  their 
luncheon-box  and  offered  it  to  the  cub,  but  it 
showed  no  sign  of  wanting  to  eat;  so  they 
stroked  it  gently  on  the  back  and  petted  it; 
and  as  the  pain  of  the  wound  seemed  to  have 
subsided,  they  were  admiring  the  properties 
of  the  herb,  when,  opposite  to  them,  they  saw 
the  old  foxes  sitting  watching  them  by  the 
side  of  some  stacks  of  rice  straw. 

*^Look  there!  the  old  foxes  have  come  back, 
out  of  fear  for  their  cub^s  safety.  Come,  we 
will  set  it  free!''  And  with  these  words  they 
untied  the  string  round  the  cub's  neck,  and 
turned  its  head  toward  the  spot  where  the 
old  foxes  sat;  and  as  the  wounded  foot  was 
no  longer  painful,  with  one  bound  it  dashed 
to  its  parents'  side  and  licked  them  all  over 
for  joy,  while  they  seemed  to  bow  their  thanks, 
looking  toward  the  two  friends.  So,  with 
peace  in  their  hearts,  the  latter  went  off  to 
another  place,  and,  choosing  a  pretty  spot, 
produced  the  wine  bottle  and  ate  their  noon- 
day meal;  and  after  a  pleasant  day,  they 
returned  to  their  homes,  and  became  firmer 
friends  than  ever. 

Now  the  man  who  had  rescued  the  fox's 


42       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

cub  was  a  tradesman  in  good  circumstances: 
he  had  three  or  four  agents  and  two  maid- 
servants, besides  men-servants;  and  alto- 
gether he  Hved  in  a  hberal  manner.  He  was 
married,  and  this  union  had  brought  him 
one  son,  who  had  reached  his  tenth  year,  but 
had  been  attacked  by  a  strange  disease  which 
defied  all  the  physicians'  skill  and  drugs. 
At  last  a  famous  physicain  prescribed  the  liver 
taken  from  a  live  fox,  which,  as  he  said,  would 
certainly  effect  a  cure.  If  that  were  not 
forthcoming,  the  most  expensive  medicine  in 
the  world  would  not  restore  the  boy  to  health. 
When  the  parents  heard  this,  they  were  at 
their  wits'  end.  However,  they  told  the  state 
of  the  case  to  a  man  who  Hved  on  the  moun- 
tains. "Even  though  our  child  should  die 
for  it,''  they  said,  "we  will  not  ourselves  de- 
prive other  creatures  of  their  lives;  but  you, 
who  Uve  among  the  hills,  are  sure  to  hear 
when  your  neighbours  go  out  fox-hunting. 
We  don't  care  what  price  we  might  have  to 
pay  for  a  fox's  Hver;  pray,  buy  one  for  us 
at  any  expense."  So  they  pressed  him  to 
exert  himself  on  their  behalf;  and  he,  having 
promised  faithfully  to  execute  the  commission, 
went  his  way. 


The  Grateful  Foxes  4^ 

In  the  night  of  the  following  day  there  came 
a  messenger,  who  announced  himself  as  com- 
ing from  the  person  who  had  undertaken  to 
procure  the  fox's  hver;  so  the  master  of  the 
house  went  out  to  see  him. 

"I  have  come  from  Mr.  So-and-so.  Last 
night  the  fox's  hver  that  you  required  fell 
into  his  hands;  so  he  sent  me  to  bring  it  to 
you.''  With  these  words  the  messenger 
produced  a  small  jar,  adding,  "In  a  few  days 
he  will  let  you  know  the  price." 

When  he  had  deUvered  his  message,  the 
master  of  the  house  was  greatly  pleased  and 
said,  "Indeed,  I  am  deeply  grateful  for  this 
kindness,  which  will  save  my  son's  life." 

Then  the  good  wife  came  out,  and  received 
the  jar  with  every  mark  of  politeness. 

"  We  must  make  a  present  to  the  messenger." 

"Indeed,  sir,  I've  already  been  paid  for 
my  trouble." 

"Well,  at  any  rate,  you  must  stop  the  night 
here." 

"Thank  you,  sir:  I've  a  relation  in  the 
next  village  whom  I  have  not  seen  for  a 
long  while,  and  I  will  pass  the  night 
with  him;"  and  so  he  took  his  leave,  and 
went  away. 


44       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

The  parents  lost  no  time  in  sending  to  let 
the  physician  know  that  they  had  procured 
the  fox's  Hver.  The  next  day  the  doctor 
came  and  compounded  a  medicine  for  the 
patient,  which  at  once  produced  a  good  effect, 
and  there  was  no  little  joy  in  the  household. 
As  luck  would  have  it,  three  days  after  this 
the  man  whom  they  had  commissioned  to 
buy  the  fox's  hver  came  to  the  house:  so  the 
goodwife  hurried  out  to  meet  him  and  wel- 
come  him. 

"How  quickly  you  fulfilled  our  wishes, 
and  how  kind  of  you  to  send  at  once! 
The  doctor  perpared  the  medicine,  and  now 
our  boy  can  get  up  and  walk  about  the 
room;    and     it's    all    owing    to    your  good- 


ness." 


"Wait  a  bit!"  cried  the  guest,  who  did  not 
know  what  to  make  of  the  joy  of  the  two 
parents.  "The  commission  with  which  you 
entrusted  me  about  the  fox's  liver  turned 
out  to  be  a  matter  of  impossibihty,  so  I  came 
to-day  to  make  my  excuses;  and  now  I  really 
can't  understand  what  you  are  so  grateful  to 
me  for." 

"We  are  thanking  you,  sir,"  replied  the 
master  of  the  house,  bowing  with  his  hands 


The  Grateful  Foxes  45 

on  the  ground,  "for  the  fox's  liver  which  we 
asked  you  to  procure  for  us.'' 

"I  really  am  perfectly  unaware  of  having 
sent  you  a  fox's  liver:  there  must  be  some 
mistake  here.  Pray  inquire  carefully  into 
the  matter." 

"Well,  this  is  very  strange.  Four  nights 
ago,  a  man  of  some  five  or  six  and  thirty  years 
of  age  came  with  a  verbal  message  from  you, 
to  the  e£fect  that  you  had  sent  him  with  a 
fox's  liver,  which  you  had  just  procured,  and 
said  that  he  would  come  and  tell  us  the  price 
another  day.  When  we  asked  him  to  spend 
the  night  here,  he  answered  that  he  would 
lodge  with  a  relation  in  the  next  village,  and 
went  away." 

The  visitor  was  more  and  more  lost  in 
amazement,  and,  leaning  his  head  on  one  side 
in  deep  thought,  confessed  that  he  could  make 
nothing  of  it.  As  for  the  husband  and  wife, 
they  felt  quite  out  of  countenance  at  having 
thanked  a  man  so  warmly  for  favours  of  which 
he  denied  all  knowledge;  and  so  the  visitor 
took  his  leave  and  went  home. 

That  night  there  appeared  at  the  pillow  of 
the  master  of  the  house  a  woman  of  about  one 
or  two  and  thirty  years  of  age,  who  said: 


46       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

"I  am  the  fox  that  Hves  at  such-and-such  z 
mountain.  Last  spring,  when  I  was  taking 
out  my  cub  to  play,  it  was  carried  off  by  somr 
boys,  and  only  saved  by  your  goodness.  The 
desire  to  requite  this  kindness  pierced  me  to 
the  quick.  At  last,  when  calamity  attacked 
your  house,  I  thought  I  might  be  of  use  to 
you.  Your  son's  illness  could  not  be  cured 
without  a  liver  taken  from  a  Hve  fox,  so  to 
repay  your  kindness  I  killed  my  cub  and 
took  out  its  liver;  then  its  sire,  disguising 
himself  as  a  messenger,  brought  it  to  your 
house." 

And  as  she  spoke,  the  fox  shed  tears;  and 
the  master  of  the  house,  wishing  to  thank  her, 
moved  in  bed,  upon  which  his  wife  awoke  and 
asked  him  what  was  the  matter;  but  he  too, 
to  her  great  astonishment,  was  biting  the 
pillow  and  weeping  bitterly. 

"Why  are  you  weeping  thus?"  asked   she. 

At  last  he  sat  up  in  bed  and  said:  "Last 
spring,  when  I  was  out  on  a  pleasure  excursion, 
I  was  the  means  of  saving  the  Hfe  of  a  fox's 
cub,  as  I  told  you  at  the  time.  The  other  day 
I  told  Mr.  So-and-so  that,  although  my  son 
were  to  die  before  my  eyes,  I  would  not  be 
the  means  of  kiUing  a  fox   on    purpose,  but 


The  Grateful  Foxes  4^ 

asked  him,  in  case  he  heard  of  any  hunter 
killing  a  fox,  to  buy  it  for  me.  How  the  foxes 
came  to  hear  of  this  I  don't  know;  but  the 
foxes  to  whom  I  had  shown  kindness  killed 
their  own  cud  and  took  out  the  liver;  and 
the  old  dog-fox,  disguising  himself  as  a  mes- 
senger from  the  person  to  whom  we  had  con- 
fided the  commission,  came  here  with  it.  His 
mate  has  just  been  at  my  pillow-side  and  told 
Die  all  about  it.  Hence  it  was  that,  in  spite 
of  myself,  I  was  moved  to  tears.'' 

When  she  heard  this,  the  goodwife  likewise 
was  blinded  by  her  tears,  and  for  a  while  they 
lay  lost  in  thought;  but  at  last,  coming  to 
themselves,  they  lighted  the  lamp  on  the 
shelf  on  which  the  family  idol  stood,  and  spent 
the  night  in  reciting  prayers  and  praises,  and  the 
next  day  they  pubUshed  the  matter  to  the 
household  and  to  their  relations  and  friends. 
Now,  although  there  are  instances  of  men 
killing  their  own  children  to  requite  a  favour, 
there  is  no  other  example  of  foxes  having 
done  such  a  thing;  so  the  story  became  the 
talk  of  the  whole  country. 

Now,  the  boy  who  had  recovered  through 
the  efficacy  of  this  medicine  selected  the  pret- 
tiest spot  on  the  premises  to  erect  a  shrine 


48       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

to  Inari  Sama,*  the  Fox  God,  and  offered 
sacrifice  to  the  two  old  foxes,  for  whom  he 
purchased  the  highest  rank  at  the  court  of  the 
Mikado, 

The  passage  in  the  tale  which  speaks  of 
rank  being  purchased  for  the  foxes  at  the 
court  of  the  Mikado  is,  of  course,  a  piece  of 
nonsense.  "The  saints  who  are  worshipped 
in  Japan,"  writes  a  native  authority,  "are  men 
who,  in  the  remote  ages,  when  the  country 
was  developing  itself,  were  sages,  and  by 
their  great  a^d  virtuous  deeds  having  earned 
the  gratitude  of  future  generations,  received 
divine  honours  after  their  death.     How  can 

*  Inari  Sama  is  the  title  under  which  was  deified  a  certain 
mythical  personage,  called  Uga,  to  whom  tradition  attributes  the 
honour  of  having  first  discovered  and  cultivated  the  rice-plant. 
He  is  represented  carrying  a  few  ears  of  rice,  and  is  symbolized 
by  a  snake  guarding  a  bale  of  rice  grain.  The  foxes  wait  upon 
him,  and  do  his  bidding.  Inasmuch  as  rice  is  the  most  important 
and  necessary  product  of  Japan,  the  honours  which  Inari  Sama 
receives  are  extraordinary.  Almost  every  house  in  the  country 
contains  somewhere  about  the  grounds  a  pretty  little  shrine  in 
his  honour;  and  on  a  certain  day  of  the  second  month  of  the  year 
his  feast  is  celebrated  with  much  beating  of  drums  and  other 
noises,  in  which  the  children  take  a  special  delight.  "On  this 
day,"  says  the  O-Satsuyo,  a  Japanese  cyclopaedia,  "at  Yeddo, 
where  there  are  myriads  upon  myriads  of  shrines  to  Inari  Sama, 
there  are  all  sorts  of  ceremonies.  Long  banners  with  inscriptions 
Ere  erected,  lamps  and  lanterns  are  hung  up,  and  the  houses  are 
decked  with  various  dolls  and  figures;  the  sound  of  flutes  and 
drums  is  heard,  and  people  dance  and  make  holiday  according 
lo  their  fancy.  In  short,  it  is  the  most  bustling  festival  of  the 
Yeiido  year." 


The  Grateful  Foxes  49 

the  Son  of  Heaven,  who  is  the  father  and 
mother  of  his  people,  turn  dealer  in  ranks  and 
honours?  If  rank  were  a  matter  of  barter, 
it  would  cease  to  be  a  reward  to  the  virtuous." 
All  matters  connected  with  the  shrines  of 
the  Shinto,  or  indigenous  religion,  are  confided 
to  the  superintendence  of  the  families  of 
Yoshida  and  Fushimi,  Kuges  or  nobles  of  the 
Mikado's  court  at  Kiyoto.  The  affairs  of 
the  Buddhist  or  imported  religion  are  under 
the  care  of  the  family  of  Kanjuji.  As  it  is 
necessary  that  those  who  as  priests  perform 
the  honourable  office  of  serving  the  gods 
should  be  persons  of  some  standing,  a  certain 
small  rank  is  procured  for  them  through  the 
intervention  of  the  representatives  of  the 
above  noble  families,  who,  on  the  issuing  of  the 
required  patent,  receive  as  their  perquisite  a 
fee,  which,  although  insignificant  in  itself, 
is  yet  of  importance  to  the  poor  Kuges,  whose 
penniless  condition  forms  a  great  contrast 
to  the  wealth  of  their  inferiors  in  rank,  the 
Daimios.  I  believe  that  this  is  the  only  case 
in  which  rank  can  be  bought  or  sold  in  Japan. 
In  China,  on  the  contrary,  in  spite  of  what 
has  been  written  by  Meadows  and  other 
admirers  of  the  examination  system,  a  man 


50       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

can  be  what  he  pleases  by  paying  for  it;  and 
the  coveted  button,  which  is  nominally  the 
reward  of  learning  and  abihty,  is  more  often 
the  prize  of  wealthy  ignorance. 

The  saints  who  are  alluded  to  above  are  the 
saints  of  the  whole  country,  as  distinct  from 
those  who  for  special  deeds  are  locally 
worshipped. 

Touching  the  remedy  of  the  fox's  liver, 
prescribed  in  the  tale,  I  may  add  that  there 
would  be  nothing  strange  in  this  to  a  person 
acquainted  with  the  Chinese  pharmacopoeia, 
which  the  Japanese  long  exclusively  followed, 
although  they  are  now  successfully  studying 
the  art  of  healing  as  practised  in  the  West. 
When  I  was  at  Peking,  I  saw  a  Chinese  physi- 
cian prescribe  a  decoction  of  three  scorpions 
for  a  child  struck  down  with  fever;  and  on 
another  occasion  a  groom  of  mine,  suffering 
from  dysentery,  was  treated  with  acupuncture 
of  the  tongue.  The  art  of  medicine  would 
appear  to  be  at  the  present  time  in  China 
much  in  the  state  in  which  it  existed  in  Europe 
in  the  sixteenth  century,  when  the  excretions 
and  secretions  of  all  manner  of  animals,  sau- 
rians,  and  venomous  snakes  and  insects,  and 
even  live  bugs,  were  administered  to  patients. 


The  Grateful  Foxes  51 

''Some  physicians,"  says  Matthiolus,  ''use  the 
ashes  of  scorpions,  burnt  aHve,  for  retention 
caused  by  either  renal  or  vesical  calculi.  But 
I  have  myself  thoroughly  experienced  the 
utility  of  an  oil  I  make  myself,  whereof  scor- 
pions form  a  very  large  portion  of  the  in- 
gredients. If  only  the  region  of  the  heart  and 
all  the  pulses  of  the  body  be  anointed  with 
it,  it  will  free  the  patients  from  the  effects  of 
all  kinds  of  poisons  taken  by  the  mouth,  cor- 
rosive ones  excepted."  Decoctions  of  Egyptian 
mummies  were  much  commended,  and  often 
prescribed  with  due  academical  solemnity; 
and  the  bones  of  the  human  skull,  pulverized 
and  administered  with  oil,  were  used  as  a 
specific  in  cases  of  renal  calculus.  (See  Petri 
Andreas  MatthioH  ''Opera,"  1574.) 

Tbese  remarks  were  made  to  me  by  a  medi- 
cal gentleman  to  whom  I  mentioned  the 
Chinese  doctor's  prescription  of  scorpion  tea, 
and  they  seem  to  me  so  curious  that  I  insert 
them  for  comparison's  sake. 


VII 

THE  BADGER'S  MONEY 

IT  IS  a  common  saying  among  men  that  to 
forget  favours  received  is  the  part  of  a 
bird  or  a  beast:  an  ungrateful  man  will  be 
ill  spoken  of  by  all  the  world.  And  yet  even 
birds  and  beasts  will  show  gratitude;  so  that 
a  man  who  does  not  requite  a  favour  is 
worse  even  than  dumb  brutes.  Is  not  this  a 
disgrace? 

Once  upon  a  time,  in  a  hut  at  a  place  called 
Namekata,  in  Hitachi,  there  lived  an  old 
priest  famous  neither  for  learning  nor  wisdom, 
but  bent  only  on  passing  his  days  in  prayer 
and  meditation.  He  had  not  even  a  child 
to  wait  upon  him,  but  prepared  his  food  with 
his  own  hands.  Night  and  morning  he  re- 
cited the  prayer  ^^Namu  Amida  Butsu,"* 
intent  upon  that  alone.     Although  the  fame 

*  A  Buddhist  prayer,  in  which  something  approaching  to  the 
sounds  of  the  original  Sanscrit  has  been  preserved.  The  meaning 
of  the  prayer  is  explained  as,  "Save  us,  eternal  Buddha' "  Many 
even  of  the  priests  who  repeat  it  know  it  only  as  a  formula,  without 
understanding  it. 

52 


The  Badger^s  Money  53 

of  his  virtue  did  not  reach  far,  yet  his  neigh- 
bours respected  and  revered  him,  and  often 
brought  him  food  and  raiment;  and  when 
his  roof  or  his  walls  fell  out  of  repair,  they 
would  mend  them  for  him;  so  for  the  things 
of  this  world  he  took  no  thought. 

One  very  cold  night,  when  he  Httle  thought 
any  one  was  outside,  he  heard  a  voice  calling, 
*^Your  reverence!  your  reverence!"  So  he 
rose  and  went  out  to  see  who  it  was,  and  there 
he  beheld  an  old  badger  standing.  Any  ordi- 
nary man  would  have  been  greatly  alarmed  at 
the  apparition;  but  the  priest,  being  such  as 
he  has  been  described  above,  showed  no  sign 
of  fear,  but  asked  the  creature  its  business. 
Upon  this  the  badger  respectfully  bent  its 
knees  and  said: 

''Hitherto,  sir,  my  lair  has  been  in  the 
mountains,  and  of  snow  or  frost  I  have  taken 
no  heed;  but  now  I  am  growing  old,  and  this 
severe  cold  is  more  than  I  can  bear.  I  pray 
you  to  let  me  enter  and  warm  myself  at  the 
fire  of  your  cottage,  that  I  may  live  through 
this  bitter  night. '^ 

When  the  priest  heard  what  a  helpless  state 
the  beast  was  reduced  to,  he  was  filled  with 
pity  and  said: 


54       Polk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

"That's  a  very  slight  matter:  make  haste 
and  come  in  and  warm  yourself/' 

The  badger,  delighted  with  so  good  a  re- 
ception, went  into  the  hut,  and  squatting 
down  by  the  fire  began  to  warm  itself;  and  the 
priest,  with  renewed  fervour,  recited  his  prayers 
and  struck  his  bell  before  the  image  of  Buddha, 
looking  straight  before  him. 

After  two  hours  the  badger  took  its  leave, 
with  profuse  expressions  of  thanks,  and  went 
out;  and  from  that  time  forth  it  came  every 
night  to  the  hut.  As  the  badger  would  col- 
lect and  bring  with  it  dried  branches  and 
dead  leaves  from  the  hills  for  firewood,  the 
priest  at  last  became  very  friendly  with  it, 
and  got  used  to  its  company;  so  that  if  ever, 
as  the  night  wore  on,  the  badger  did  not 
arrive,  he  used  to  miss  it,  and  wonder  why 
it  did  not  come.  When  the  winter  was  over, 
and  the  springtime  came  at  the  end  of  the 
second  month,  the  badger  gave  up  its  visits, 
and  was  no  more  seen;  but,  on  the  return 
of  the  winter,  the  beast  resumed  its  old  habit 
of  coming  to  the  hut.  When  this  practice 
had  gone  on  for  ten  years,  one  day  the  badger 
said  to  the  priest,  "Through  your  reverence's 
kindness  for  all  these  years,  I  have  been  able 


The  Badger's  Money  55 

to  pass  the  winter  nights  in  comfort.  Your 
favours  are  such  that  during  all  my  life,  and 
even  after  my  death,  I  must  remember  them. 
What  can  I  do  to  requite  them?  If  there  is 
anything  that  you  wish  for,  pray  tell  me/' 

The  priest,  smiling  at  this  speech,  answered: 
^*  Being  such  as  I  am,  I  have  no  desire  and  no 
wishes.  Glad  as  I  am  to  hear  your  kind  inten- 
tions, there  is  nothing  that  I  can  ask  you  to  do 
for  me.  You  need  feel  no  anxiety  on  my  ac- 
count. As  long  as  I  live,  when  the  winter  comes, 
you  shall  be  welcome  here."  The  badger,  on 
hearing  this,  could  not  conceal  its  admiration 
of  the  depth  of  the  old  man's  benevolence; 
but  having  so  much  to  be  grateful  for,  it  felt 
hurt  at  not  being  able  to  requite  it.  As  this 
subject  was  often  renewed  between  them,  the 
priest  at  last,  touched  by  the  goodness  of  the 
badger's  heart,  said:  "Since  I  have  shaven 
my  head,  renounced  the  world,  and  forsaken 
the  pleasures  of  this  life,  I  have  no  desire  to 
gratify,  yet  I  own  I  should  like  to  possess 
three  riyos  in  gold.  Food  and  raiment  I 
receive  by  the  favour  of  the  villagers,  so  I 
take  no  heed  for  those  things.  Were  I  to 
die  to-morrow,  and  attain  my  wish  of  being 
bom   again   into   the   next   world,    the   same 


56       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

kind  folk  have  promised  to  meet  and  bury  my 
body.  Thus,  although  I  have  no  other  rea- 
son to  wish  for  money,  still  if  I  had  three 
riyos  I  would  offer  them  up  at  some  holy 
shrine,  that  masses  and  prayers  might  be  said 
for  me,  whereby  I  might  enter  into  salvation. 
Yet  I  would  not  get  this  money  by  violent  or 
unlawful  means;  I  only  think  of  what  might 
be  if  I  had  it.  So  you  see,  since  you  have 
expressed  such  kind  feelings  toward  me,  I 
have  told  you  what  is  on  my  mind.''  When 
the  priest  had  done  speaking,  the  badger  leant 
its  head  on  one  side  with  a  puzzled  and  anxious 
look,  so  much  so  that  the  old  man  was  sorry 
he  had  expressed  a  wish  which  seemed  to  give 
the  beast  trouble,  and  tried  to  retract  what 
he  had  said.  "Posthumous  honours,  after 
all,  are  the  wish  of  ordinary  men.  I,  who 
am  a  priest,  ought  not  to  entertain  such 
thoughts,  or  to  want  money;  so  pray  pay  no 
attention  to  what  I  have  said;''  and  the  badger, 
feigning  assent  to  what  the  priest  had  impressed 
upon  it,  returned  to  the  hills  as  usual. 

From  that  tim^  forth  the  badger  came  no 
more  to  the  hut.  The  priest  thought  this 
very  strange,  but  imagined  either  that  the 
badger  stayed  away  because  it  did  not  like 


The  Badger^ s  Money  57 

to  come  without  the  money,  or  that  it  had 
been  killed  in  an  attempt  to  steal  it;  and  he 
blamed  himseK  for  having  added  to  his  sins 
for  no  purpose,  repenting  when  it  was  too  late: 
persuaded,  however,  that  the  badger  must 
have  been  killed,  he  passed  his  time  in  putting 
up  prayers  upon  prayers  for  it. 

After  three  years  had  gone  by,  one  night 
the  old  man  heard  a  voice  near  his  door  calling 
out,  "Your  reverence!  your  reverence!" 

As  the  voice  was  like  that  of  the  badger,  he 
jumped  up  as  soon  as  he  heard  it,  and  ran  to 
open  the  door;  and  there,  sure  enough,  was 
the  badger.  The  priest,  in  great  delight, 
cried  out:  "And  so  you  are  safe  and  sound, 
after  all!  Why  have  you  been  so  long  without 
coming  here?  I  have  been  expecting  you 
anxiously  this  long  while." 

So  the  badger  came  into  the  hut  and  said: 
"If  the  money  which  you  required  had  been 
for  unlawful  purposes,  I  could  easily  have 
procured  as  much  as  ever  you  might  have 
wanted;  but  when  I  heard  that  it  was  to  be 
offered  to  a  temple  for  masses  for  your  soul, 
I  thought  that,  if  I  were  to  steal  the  hidden 
treasure  of  some  other  man,  you  could  not 
apply  to  a  sacred  purpose  money  which  had 


58       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

been  obtained  at  the  expense  of  his  sorrow. 
So  I  went  to  the  island  of  Sado,*  and  gather- 
ing the  sand  and  earth  which  had  been  cast 
away  as  worthless  by  the  miners,  fused  it 
afresh  in  the  fire;  and  at  this  work  I  spent 
months  and  days."  As  the  badger  finished 
speaking,  the  priest  looked  at  the  money 
which  it  had  produced,  and  sure  enough  he 
saw  that  it  was  bright  and  new  and  clean; 
so  he  took  the  money,  and  received  it  respect- 
fully,  raising  it  to  his  head. 

"And  so  you  have  had  all  this  toil  and 
labour  on  account  of  a  foolish  speech  of  mine? 
I  have  obtained  my  heart's  desire,  and  am 
truly  thankful.'' 

As  he  was  thanking  the  badger  with  great 
politeness  and  ceremony,  the  beast  said: 
"In  doing  this  I  have  but  fulfilled  my  own 
wish;  still  I  hope  that  you  will  tell  this  thing 
to  no  man." 

"Indeed,"  replied  the  priest,  "I  cannot 
choose  but  tell  this  story.  For  if  I  keep  this 
money  in  my  poor  hut,  it  will  be  stolen  by 
thieves:  I  must  either  give  it  to  some  one 
to  keep  for  me,  or  else  at  once  offer  it  up  at 


*  An  island  on  the  west  coast  of  Japan,  famous  for  its  gold 
mines. 


The  Badger's  Money  59 

the  temple.  And  when  I  do  this,  when  people 
see  a  poor  old  priest  with  a  sum  of  money 
quite  unsuited  to  his  station,  they  will  think 
it  very  suspicious,  and  I  shall  have  to  tell 
the  tale  as  it  occurred;  but  I  shall  say  that 
the  badger  that  gave  me  the  money  has  ceased 
coming  to  my  hut,  you  need  not  fear  being 
waylaid,  but  can  come,  as  of  old,  and  shelter 
yourself  from  the  cold.''  To  this  the  badger 
nodded  assent;  and  as  long  as  the  old  priest 
lived,  it  came  and  spent  the  winter  nights 
m\h  him. 

From  this  story,  it  is  plain  that  even  beasts 
have  a  sense  of  gratitude:  in  this  quality 
dogs  excel  all  other  beasts.  Is  not  the  story 
of  the  dog  of  Totoribe  Yorodzu  written  in 
the  Annals  of  Japan?  I*  have  heard  that 
many  anecdotes  of  this  nature  have  been 
collected  and  printed  in  a  book,  which  I 
have  not  yet  seen;  but  as  the  facts  which  I 
have  recorded  relate  to  a  badger,  they  appear 
to  me  to  be  passing  strange. 

*The  author  of  the  tale. 


VIII 
WHY  BROTHER  BEAR  HAS  NO  TAIL 

I'CLAR'  ter  gracious,  honey,"  Uncle  Remus 
exclaimed  one  night,  as  the  little  boy  ran 
in,  ^you  sholy  ain't  chaw'd  yo'  vittles.  Hit 
ain't  bin  no  time,  skacely,  sence  de  supper- 
bell  rung,  en  ef  you  go  on  dis  a-way,  you'll 
des  nat'ally  pe'sh  yo'se'f  out." 

*'0h,  I  wasn't  hungry,"  said  the  little  boy. 
"I  had  something  before  supper,  and  I  wasn't 
hungry  anyway." 

The  old  man  looked  keenly  at  the  child, 
and  presently  he  said: 

"De  ins  en  de  outs  er  dat  kinder  talk  aU 
come  ter  de  same  p'int  in  my  min'.  Youer 
bin  a-cuttin'  up  at  de  table,  en  Mars  John, 
he  tuck'n  sont  you  'way  fum  dar,  en  w'iles 
he  think  youer  off  some'er  a-snifflin'  en  a-feelin' 
bad,  yer  you  is  a-high-primin'  'roun'  des  lak 
you  done  had  mo'  supper  dan  de  King  er 
Philanders." 

Before  the  little  boy  could  inquire  about 
60 


Why  Brother  Bear  Has  no  Tail  6i 

the  King  of  Philanders  he  heard  his  father 
caUing  him.  He  started  to  go  out,  but  Uncle 
Remus  motioned  him  back. 

"Des  set  right  whar  you  is,  honey  —  des 
set  right  still." 

Then  Uncle  Remus  went  to  the  door  and 
answered  for  the  child;  and  a  very  queer 
answer  it  was  —  one  that  could  be  heard  half 
over  the  plantation: 

"Mars  John,  I  wish  you  en  Miss  Sally  be 
so  good  ez  ter  let  dat  chile  'lone.  He  down 
yer  cr3dn'  he  eyes  out,  en  he  ain't  boddern' 
'long  er  nobody  in  de  roun'  worl'." 

Uncle  Remus  stood  in  the  door  a  moment 
to  see  what  the  reply  would  be,  but  he  heard 
none.  Thereupon  he  continued,  in  the  same 
loud  tone : 

"I  ain't  bin  use  ter  no  sich  gwines  on  in 
Ole  Miss  time,  en  I  ain't  gwine  git  use  ter  it 
now.     Dat  I  ain't." 

Presently  'Tildy,  the  house-girl,  brought 
the  little  boy  his  supper,  and  the  girl  was  no 
sooner  out  of  hearing  than  the  child  swapped 
it  with  Uncle  Remus  for  a  roasted  yam,  and 
the  enjoyment  of  both  seemed  to  be  complete. 

"Uncle  Remus,"  said  the  little  boy,  after 
a  while,  "you  know  I  wasn't  crying  just  now." 


62       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

"Dat's  so,  honey/'  the  old  man  replied, 
*'but  't  wouldn't  er  bin  long  'fo'  you  would 
er  bin,  kaze  Mars  John  bawl  out  lak  a  man 
wa't  got  a  strop  in  he  han',  so  wa't  de 
diff'unce?" 

When  they  had  finished  eating,  Uncle  Remus 
busied  himself  in  cutting  and  trimming  some 
sole-leather  for  future  use.  His  knife  was  so 
keen,  and  the  leather  fell  away  from  it  so 
smoothly  and  easily,  that  the  little  boy  wanted 
to  trim  some  himself.  But  to  this  Uncle 
Remus  would  not  listen. 

"  'Tain't  on'y  chilluns  w'at  got  de  consate  er 
doin'  eve'ything  dey  see  yuther  folks  do. 
Hit's  grown  folks  w'at  oughter  know  better," 
said  the  old  man.  "Dat's  des  de  way  Brer 
B'ar  git  his  tail  broke  off  smick-smack-smoove, 
en  down  ter  dis  day  he  be  funnies'-lookin' 
creetur  w'at  wobble  on  top  er  dry  groun'." 

Instantly  the  little  boy  forgot  all  about 
Uncle  Remus's  sharp  knife. 

^^Hit  seem  lak  dat  in  dem  days  Brer  Rabbit 
en  Brer  Tarrypin  done  gone  in  cohoots  fer  ter 
outdo  de  t'er  creeturs.  One  time  Brer  Rabbit 
tuck'n  make  a  call  on  Brer  Tarrypin,  but 
w'en  he  git  ter  Brer  Tarrypin  house,  he  year 
talk  fum  Miss  Tarrypin  dat  her  ole  man  done 


Why  Brother  Bear  Has  no  Tail  63 

gone  fer  ter  spen'  de  day  wid  Mr.  Mud-Turkle, 
w'ich  dey  wuz  blood  kin.  Brer  Rabbit  he 
put  out  atter  Brer  Tarrypin,  en  w'en  he  got 
ter  Mr.  Mud-Turkle  house,  dey  all  sot  up, 
dey  did,  en  tole  tales,  en  den  w'en  twelf  er' 
clock  come  dey  had  crawfish  fer  dinner,  en 
dey  'joy  deyse'f  right  erlong.  Atter  dinner 
dey  went  down  ter  Mr.  Mud-Turkle  mill- 
pon,'  en  w'en  dey  git  dar  Mr.  Mud-Turkle 
en  Brer  Tarrypin  dey  'muse  deyse'f,  dey  did, 
wid  sHdin'  fum  de  top  uv  a  big  slantin'  rock 
down  inter  de  water. 

"I'speck  you  moughter  seen  rocks  in  de 
water  'fo'  now,  whar  dey  git  green  en  slipp'y," 
said  Uncle  Remus. 

The  Httle  boy  had  not  only  seen  them,  but 
had  found  them  to  be  very  dangerous  to  walk 
upon,  and  the  old  man  continued: 

"Well,  den,  dish  yer  rock  wuz  mighty  shck 
en  mighty  slantin'.  Mr.  Mud-Turkle,  he'd 
crawl  ter  de  top,  en  tu'n  loose,  en  go  a-sailin' 
dowTi  inter  de  water  —  kersplashf  Ole  Brer 
Tarrypin,  he'd  foller  atter,  en  slide  down 
inter  de  water  —  kersplashf  Ole  Brer  Rabbit, 
he  sot  off,  he  did,  en  praise  um  up. 

"Wiles  dey  wuz  a-gwine  on  dis  a-way, 
a-havin'  der  fun,  en  'joyin'  deyse'f,  yer  come 


64       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

ole  Brer  B'ar.  He  year  um  laffin'  en  holl'in'^ 
en  he  hail  um. 

^^^Heyo,  folks!  Wat  all  dis?  Ef  my  eye 
am't  'ceive  me,  dish  yer's  Brer  Rabbit,  en 
Brer  Tarrypin,  en  ole  Unk'  Tommy  Mud- 
Turkle,'  sez  Brer  B'ar,  sezee. 

*^'De  same,'  sez  Brer  Rabbit,  sezee,  ^en 
yer  we  is  'joyin'  de  day  dat  passes  des  lak 
dey  wa'n't  no  hard  times/ 

"*Well,  well,  well!'  sez  ole  Brer  B'ar,  sezee, 
*a-slippin'  en  a-slidin'  en  makin'  free!  En 
w'at  de  matter  wid  Brer  Rabbit  dat  he  ain't 
j'inin'  in?'  sezee. 

"Ole  Brer  Rabbit  he  wink  at  Brer  Tarry- 
pin,  en  Brer  Tarrypin  he  hunch  Mr.  Mud- 
Turkle,  en  den  Brer  Rabbit  he  up'n  'low, 
he  did: 

"'My  goodness.  Brer  B'ar!  you  can't  'speck 
a  man  fer  ter  shp  en  slide  de  whole  blessid  day, 
kin  you?  I  done  had  my  fun,  en  now  I'm 
a-settin'  out  yer  lettin'  my  cloze  dry.  Hit's 
tu'n  en  tu'n  about  wid  me  en  deze  gents  w'en 
dey's  any  fun  gwine  on,'  sezee. 

"'Maybe  Brer  B'ar  might  jine  in  wid  us/ 
sez  Brer  Tarrypin,  sezee. 

"Brer  Rabbit  he  des  holler  en  laff. 

"'Shoo!'  sezee,  'Brer  B'ar  foot  too  big  en 


Why  Brother  Bear  Has  no  Tail  65 

he  tail  too  long  fer  ter  slide  down  dat  rock/ 
sezee. 

'^Dis  kinder  put  Brer  B'ar  on  he  mettle, 
en  he  up'n  'spon',  he  did: 

"  ^  Maybe  dey  is,  en  maybe  dey  ain't,  yit 
I  ain't  a-f eared  ter  try.' 

"Wid  dat  de  yuthers  tuck'n  made  way 
fer  'im,  en  ole  Brer  B'ar  he  git  up  on  de  rock 
he  did,  en  squot  down  on  he  hunkers,  en  quile 
he  tail  und'  'im,  en  start  down.  Fus'  he  go 
sorter  slow,  en  he  grin  lak  he  feel  good;  den 
he  go  sorter  peart,  en  he  grin  lak  he  feel  bad; 
den  he  go  mo'  pear  ter,  en  he  grin  lak  he  skeerd; 
den  he  strack  de  slick  part,  en,  gentermens! 
he  swaller  de  grin  en  fetch  a  howl  dat  moughter 
bin  yeard  a  mile,  en  he  hit  de  water  lak  a 
dumbly  a-fallin.' 

"You  kin  gimme  denial,"  Uncle  Remus 
continued  after  a  little  pause,  "but  des  ez 
sho'  ez  you  er  settin'  dar,  w'en  Brer  B'ar 
sHck'd  up  en  flew  down  dat  rock,  he  break 
off  he  tail  right  smick-smack-smoove,  en 
mo'n  dat,  w'en  he  make  his  disappear'nce 
up  de  big  road.  Brer  Rabbit  holler  out: 

"^Brer  B'ar!  —  O  Brer  B'ar!  I  year  tell  dat 
flaxseed  poultices  is  mighty  good  fer  so'  places ! ' 

"Yit  Brer  B'ar  ain't  look  back." 


IX 

THE  ORIGIN  OF  RUBIES 

THERE  was  a  certain  king  who  died  leav- 
ing four  sons  behind  him  with  his 
queen.  The  queen  was  passionately  fond 
of  the  youngest  of  the  princes.  She  gave 
him  the  best  robes,  the  best  horses,  the  best 
food,  and  the  best  furniture.  The  other 
three  princes  became  exceedingly  jealous  of 
their  youngest  brother,  and,  conspiring  against 
him  and  their  mother,  made  them  live  in  a 
separate  house,  and  took  possession  of  the 
estate.  Owing  to  overindulgence,  the  young- 
est prince  had  become  very  wilful.  He  never 
listened  to  any  one,  not  even  to  his  mother, 
but  had  his  own  way  in  everything.  One 
day  he  went  with  his  mother  to  bathe  in 
the  river.  A  large  boat  was  riding  there  at 
anchor.  None  of  the  boatmen  were  in  it. 
The  prince  went  into  the  boat,  and  told  his 
mother  to  come  into  it.  His  mother  besought 
him  to  get  down  from  the  boat,  as  it  did  not 

66 


The  Origin  of  Rubies  67 

belong  to  him.  But  the  prince  said,  "No, 
mother  I  am  not  coming  down;  I  mean  to  go 
on  a  voyage,  and  if  you  wish  to  come  with 
me,  then  delay  not  but  come  up  at  once,  or 
I  shall  be  off  in  a  trice/'  The  queen  besought 
the  prince  to  do  no  such  thing,  but  to  come 
down  instantly.  But  the  prince  gave  no  heed 
to  what  she  said,  and  began  to  take  up  the 
anchor.  The  queen  went  up  into  the  boat 
in  great  haste;  and  the  moment  she  was  on 
board  the  boat  started,  and  faUing  into  the 
current  passed  on  swiftly  like  an  arrow.  The 
boat  went  on  and  on  till  it  reached  the  sea. 
After  it  had  gone  many  furlongs  into  the  open 
sea,  the  boat  came  near  a  whirlpool  where 
the  prince  saw  a  great  many  rubies  of  mon- 
strous size  floating  on  the  waters.  Such 
large  rubies  no  one  had  ever  seen,  each  being 
in  value  equal  to  the  wealth  of  seven  kings. 
The  prince  caught  hold  of  half-a-dozen  of 
those  rubies,  and  put  them  on  board.  His 
mother  said,  "DarHng,  don't  take  up  those 
red  balls;  they  must  belong  to  somebody 
who  has  been  shipwrecked,  and  we  may  be 
taken  up  as  thieves."  At  the  repeated  en- 
treaties of  his  mother,  the  prince  threw  them 
into  the  sea,  keeping  only  one  tied  up  in  his 


68       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

clothes.  The  boat  then  drifted  toward  the 
coast,  and  the  queen  and  the  prince  arrived 
at  a  certain  port  where  they  landed. 

The  port  where  they  landed  was  not  a 
small  place;  it  was  a  large  city,  the  capital 
of  a  great  king.  Not  far  from  the  palace, 
the  queen  and  her  son  hired  a  hut  where  they 
lived.  As  the  prince  was  yet  a  boy,  he  was 
fond  of  playing  at  marbles.  When  the  chil- 
dren of  the  king  came  out  to  play  on  a  lawn 
before  the  palace,  our  young  prince  joined 
them.  He  had  no  marbles,  but  he  played 
with  the  ruby  which  he  had  in  his  possession. 
The  ruby  was  so  hard  that  it  broke  every 
taw  against  which  it  struck.  The  daughter 
of  the  king,  who  used  to  watch  the  games 
from  a  balcony  of  the  palace,  was  astonished 
to  see  a  brilliant  red  ball  in  the  hand  of  the 
strange  lad,  and  wanted  to  take  possession 
of  it.  She  told  her  father  that  a  boy  of  the 
street  had  an  uncommonly  bright  stone  in  his 
possession  which  she  must  have  or  else  she 
would  starve  herself  to  death.  The  king  ordered 
his  servants  to  bring  to  him  the  lad  with  that 
precious  stone.  When  the  boy  was  brought, 
the  king  wondered  at  the  largeness  and  bril- 
liancy of  the  ruby.      He  had  never  seen  any- 


The  Origin  of  Rubies  69 

thing  like  it.  He  doubted  whether  any  king 
of  any  country  in  the  world  possessed  so  great 
a  treasure.  He  asked  the  lad  where  he  had 
got  it.  The  lad  repHed  that  he  got  it  from 
the  sea.  The  king  offered  a  thousand  rupees 
for  the  ruby,  and  the  lad,  not  knowing  its 
value,  readily  parted  with  it  for  that  sum. 
He  went  with  the  money  to  his  mother,  who 
was  not  a  little  frightened,  thinking  that  her 
son  had  stolen  the  money  from  some  rich 
man's  house.  She  became  quiet,  however, 
on  being  assured  that  the  money  was  given 
to  him  by  the  king  in  exchange  for  the  red 
ball  which  he  had  picked  up  in  the  sea. 

The  king's  daughter,  on  getting  the  ruby 
put  it  in  her  hair,  and,  standing  before  her 
pet  parrot,  said  to  the  bird,  "Oh,  my  darling 
parrot,  don't  I  look  very  beautiful  with  this 
ruby  in  my  hair?"  The  parrot  replied, 
"Beautiful!  you  look  quite  hideous  with  it! 
What  princess  ever  puts  only  one  ruby  in 
her  hair?  It  would  be  somewhat  feasible 
if  you  had  two  at  least."  Stung  with  shame 
at  the  reproach  cast  in  her  teeth  by  the  parrot, 
the  princess  went  into  the  grief-chamber  of 
the  palace,  and  would  neither  eat  nor  drink. 
The  king  was  not  a  little  concerned  when  he 


70       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

heard  that  his  daughter  had  gone  into  the 
grief-chamber.  He  went  to  her,  and  asked 
her  the  cause  of  her  grief.  The  princess  told 
the  king  what  her  pet  parrot  had  said,  and 
added,  "Father,  if  you  do  not  procure  for  me 
another  ruby  hke  this,  I'll  put  an  end  to  my 
life  by  mine  own  hands.''  The  king  was 
overwhelmed  with  grief.  Where  was  he  to 
get  another  ruby  like  it?  He  doubted  whether 
another  like  it  could  be  found  in  the  whole 
world.  He  ordered  the  lad  who  had  sold 
the  ruby,  to  be  brought  into  his  presence. 
"Have  you,  young  man,"  asked  the  king, 
"another  ruby  like  the  one  you  sold  me?" 
The  lad  rephed:  "No,  I  have  not  got  one. 
Why,  do  you  want  another?  I  can  give  you 
Io*3,  if  you  msh  to  have  them.  They  are 
to  be  found  in  a  whirlpool  in  the  sea,  far,  far 
away.  I  can  go  and  fetch  some  for  you." 
Amazed  at  the  lad's  reply,  the  king  offered 
rich  rewards  for  procuring  only  another  ruby 
of  the  same  sort. 

The  lad  went  home  and  said  to  his  mother 
that  he  must  go  to  sea  again  to  fetch  some 
rubies  for  the  king.  The  woman  was  quite 
frightened  at  the  idea,  and  begged  him  not  to 
go.     But  the  lad  was  resolved  on  going,  and 


The  Origin  of  Rubies  71 

nothing  could  prevent  him  from  carrying 
out  his  purpose.  He  accordingly  went  alone 
on  board  that  same  vessel  which  had  brought 
him  and  his  mother,  and  set  sail.  He  reached 
the  whirlpool,  from  near  which  he  had  formerly 
picked  up  the  rubies.  This  time,  however, 
he  determined  to  go  to  the  exact  spot  whence 
the  rubies  were  coming  out.  He  went  to  the 
centre  of  the  whirlpool,  where  he  saw  a  gap 
reaching  to  the  bottom  of  the  ocean.  He 
dived  into  it,  leaving  his  boat  to  wheel  round 
the  whirlpool.  When  he  reached  the  bottom 
of  the  ocean  he  saw  there  a  beautiful  palace. 
He  went  inside.  In  the  centra]  room  of  the 
palace  there  was  the  god  Siva,  with  his  eyes 
closed,  and  absorbed  apparently  in  intense 
meditatiom.  A  few  feet  above  Siva^s  head 
was  a  platform,  on  which  lay  a  young  lady 
of  exquisite  beauty.  The  prince  went  to  the 
platform  and  saw  that  the  head  of  the  lady 
was  separated  from  her  body.  Horrified  at 
the  sight,  he  did  not  know  what  to  make  of 
it.  He  saw  a  stream  of  blood  trickling  from 
the  severed  head,  falling  upon  the  matted 
head  of  Siva,  and  nmning  into  the  ocean  in 
the  form  of  rubies.  After  a  httle  two  small 
rods,  one  of  silver  and  one  of  gold,  which  were 


*j2       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

lying  near  the  head  of  the  lady,  attracted  his 
eyes.  As  he  took  up  the  rods  in  his  hands, 
the  golden  rod  accidentally  fell  upon  the  head, 
on  which  the  head  immediately  joined  itself 
to  the  body,  and  the  lady  got  up.  Astonished 
at  the  sight  of  a  human  being,  the  lady  asked 
the  prince  who  he  was  and  how  he  had  got 
there.  After  hearing  the  story  of  the  prince's 
adventures,  the  lady  said,  "Unhappy  young 
man,  depart  instantly  from  this  place;  for 
when  Siva  finishes  his  meditations  he  will 
turn  you  to  ashes  by  a  single  glance  of  his 
eyes."  The  young  man,  however,  would  not 
go  except  in  her  company,  as  he  was  over 
head  and  ears  in  love  with  the  beautiful 
lady.  At  last  they  both  contrived  U  rui? 
away  from  the  palace,  and  coming  up  to  the 
surface  of  the  ocean  they  climbed  into  the 
boat  near  the  centre  of  the  whirlpool,  and 
sailed  away  toward  land,  having  previously 
laden  the  vessel  with  a  cargo  of  rubies.  The 
wonder  of  the  prince's  mother  at  seeing  the 
beautiful  damsel  may  be  well  imagined.  Early 
next  morning  the  prince  sent  a  basin  full  of 
big  rubies,  through  a  servant.  The  king 
was  astonished  beyond  measure.  His  daugh- 
ter, on  getting  the  rubies,  resolved  on  marry- 


The  Origin  of  Rubies  73 

ing  the  wonderful  lad  who  had  made  a  present 
of  them  to  her.  Though  the  prince  had  a  wife, 
whom  he  had  brought  up  from  the  depths  of 
the  ocean,  he  consented  to  have  a  second 
wife.  They  were  accordingly  married,  and 
lived  happily  for  years,  begetting  sons  and 
daughters. 

Here  my  story  endeth, 

The  Natiya-thorn  withereth,  etc 


X 

LONG,  BROAD,  AND  SHARPSIGHT 

THERE  was  a  king,  who  was  already  old, 
and  had  but  one  son.  Once  upon  a 
time  he  called  this  son  to  him  and  said  to 
him:  "My  dear  son!  you  know  that  old  fruit 
falls  to  make  room  for  other  fruit.  My  head 
is  already  ripening,  and  maybe  the  sun  will 
soon  no  longer  shine  upon  it;  but  before 
you  bury  me,  I  should  like  to  see  your  wife, 
my  future  daughter.  My  son,  marry!"  The 
prince  said:  "I  would  gladly,  father,  do  as 
you  wish;  but  I  have  no  bride,  and  don't 
know  any."  The  old  king  put  his  hand 
into  his  pocket,  took  out  a  golden  key  and 
showed  it  to  his  son,  with  the  words,  "go 
up  into  the  tower,  to  the  top  story,  look  round 
there,  and  then  tell  me  which  you  fancy." 
The  prince  went  without  delay.  Nobody 
within  the  memory  of  man  had  been  up  there 
or  had  ever  heard  what  was  up  there. 

When  he  got  up  to  the  last  story,  he  saw 
74 


Long,  Broody  and  Sharpsigkt  75 

in  the  ceiling  a  little  iron  door  like  a  trap-door. 
It  was  closed.  He  opened  it  with  the  golden 
key,  lifted  it,  and  went  up  above  it.  l  There 
was  a  large  circular  room.  The  ceihng  was 
blue  like  the  sky  on  a  clear  night,  and  silver 
stars  ghttered  on  it,  the  floor  was  a  carpet 
of  green  silk,  and  around  in  the  wall  were 
twelve  high  windows  in  golden  frames,  and 
in  each  window  on  crystal  glass  was  a  damsel 
painted  with  the  colours  of  the  rainbow, 
with  a  royal  crown  on  her  head,  in  each  win- 
dow d  different  one  in  a  different  dress,  each 
handsomer  than  the  other,  and  it  was  a  won- 
der that  the  prince  did  not  let  his  eyes  dweU 
upon  them.  When  he  had  gazed  at  them 
with  astonishment,  the  damsels  began  to 
move  as  if  they  were  alive,  looked  down  upon 
him,  smiled,  and  did  everything  but  speak. 

Now  the  prince  observed  that  one  of  the 
twelve  windows  was  covered  with  a  white  cur- 
tain; he  drew  the  curtain  to  see  what  was 
behind  it.  There  there  was  a  damsel  in  a 
white  dress,  girt  with  a  silver  girdle,  with  a 
crown  of  pearls  on  her  head;  she  was  the  most 
beautiful  of  all,  but  was  sad  and  pale,  as  if 
she  had  risen  from  the  grave.  The  prince 
stood  long  before  the  picture,  as  if  he  had  made 


76       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

a  discovery,  and  as  he  thus  gazed,  his  heart 
pained  him,  and  he  cried,  ^'This  one  will  I 
have,  and  no  other."  As  he  said  the  words 
the  damsel  bowed  her  head,  blushed  Hke  a 
rose,  and  that  instant  all  the  pictures  disap- 
peared. 

When  he  went  down  and  related  to  his 
father  what  he  had  seen  and  which  damsel 
he  had  selected,  the  old  king  became  sad, 
bethought  himself,  and  said:  ^^You  have 
done  ill,  my  son,  in  uncovering  what  was 
curtained  over,  and  have  placed  yourself 
in  great  danger  on  account  of  those  words. 
That  damsel  is  in  the  power  of  a  wicked  wiz- 
ard, and  kept  captive  in  an  iron  castle;  of 
all  who  have  attempted  to  set  her  free,  not 
one  has  hitherto  returned.  But  what's  done 
cannot  be  undone;  the  pHghted  word  is  a 
law.  Go!  try  your  luck,  and  return  home 
safe  and  sound!" 

The  prince  took  leave  of  his  father,  mounted 
his  horse,  and  rode  away  in  search  of  his  bride. 
It  came  to  pass  that  he  rode  through  a  vast 
forest,  and  through  the  forest  he  rode  on  and 
on  till  he  lost  the  road.  And  as  he  was  wander- 
ing with  his  horse  in  thickets  and  amongst 
rocks  and  morasses,  not  knomng  which  way 


Long,  Broad,  and  Sharpsight  77 

to  turn,  he  heard  somebody  shout  behind  him, 
"Hi!  stop!"  The  prince  looked  round,  and 
saw  a  tall  man  hastening  after  him.  "Stop 
and  take  me  with  you,  and  take  me  into  your 
service,  and  you  won't  regret  it!"  "Who 
are  you,"  said  the  prince,  "and  what  can  you 
do?"  "My  name  is  Long,  and  I  can  extend 
myself.  Do  you  see  a  bird's  nest  in  that 
pine  yonder?  I  will  bring  you  the  nest  down 
without  having  to  climb  up." 

Long  then  began  to  extend  himself;  his 
body  grew  rapidly  till  it  was  as  tall  as  the 
pine;  he  then  reached  the  nest,  and  in  a 
moment  contracted  himself  again  and  gave 
it  to  the  prince.  "You  know  your  business 
well,  but  what's  the  use  of  birds'  nests  to  me, 
if  you  can't  conduct  me  out  of  this  forest?" 

"Ahem!  that's  an  easy  matter,"  said  Long, 
and  began  to  extend  himself  till  he  was  thrice 
as  high  as  the  highest  fir  in  the  forest,  looked 
round,  and  said:  "Here  on  this  side  we  have 
the  nearest  way  out  of  the  forest."  He  then 
contracted  himself,  took  the  horse  by  the 
bridle,  and  before  the  prince  had  any  idea 
of  it,  they  were  beyond  the  forest.  Before 
them  was  a  long  and  wide  plain,  and  beyond 
the  plain  tall  gray  rocks,  Hke  the  walls  of  a 


78       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

large  town,  and  mountains  overgrown  with 
forest  trees. 

"Yonder,  sir,  goes  my  comrade!''  said  Long, 
and  pointed  suddenly  to  the  plain;  "you 
should  take  him  also  into  your  service;  I 
believe  he  would  serve  you  well/'  "Shout 
to  him,  and  call  him  hither,  that  I  may  see 
what  he  is  good  for."  "It  is  a  little  too  far, 
sir,"  said  Long;  "he  would  hardly  hear  me, 
and  it  would  take  a  long  time  before  he  came, 
because  he  has  a  great  deal  to  carry.  I'll 
jump  after  him  instead."  Then  Long  again 
extended  himself  to  such  a  height  that  his 
head  plunged  into  the  clouds,  made  two  or 
three  steps,  took  his  comrade  by  the  arm, 
and  placed  him  before  the  prince.  He  was 
a  short,  thick-set  fellow,  with  a  paunch  like 
a  sixty-four-gallon  cask.  "WHio  are  you?" 
demanded  the  prince,  "and  what  can  you 
do?"  "My  name,  sir,  is  Broad;  I  can  widen 
myself."  "Give  me  a  specimen."  "Ride 
quick,  sir,' quick,  back  into  the  forest!"  cried 
Broad,  as  he  began  to  blow  himself  out. 

The  prince  didn't  understand  why  he  was 
to  ride  away;  but  seeing  that  Long  made  all 
haste  to  get  into  the  forest,  he  spurred  his  horse 
and  rode  full  gallop  after  him.     It  was  high 


Long,  Broad,  and  Sharpslght  79 

time  that  he  did  ride  away,  or  else  Broad 
would  have  squashed  him,  horse  and  all,  as 
his  paunch  rapidly  grew  in  all  directions; 
it  filled  everything  everywhere,  just  as  if 
a  mountain  had  rolled  up.  Broad  then  ceased 
to  blow  himself  out,  and  took  himself  in  again, 
raising  such  a  wind  that  the  trees  in  the  forest 
bowed  and  bent,  and  became  what  he  was 
at  first.  "You  have  played  me  a  nice  trick," 
said  the  prince,  "but  I  shan't  find  such  a 
fellow  every  day;  come  with  me." 

They  proceeded  further.  When  they  ap- 
proached the  rocks,  they  met  a  man  who  had 
his  eyes  bandaged  with  a  handkerchief.  "  Sir, 
this  is  our  third  comrade,"  said  Long,  "you 
ought  to  take  him  also  into  your  service. 
I'm  sure  he  won't  eat  his  victuals  for  naught." 

"Who  are  you?"  the  prince  asked  him,  "and 
why  are  your  eyes  bandaged?  You  don't 
see  your  way!"  "No,  sir,  quite  the  contrary! 
It  is  just  because  I  see  too  well  that  I  am 
obliged  to  bandage  my  eyes;  I  see  with  band- 
agtd  eyes  just  as  well  as  others  with  unband- 
aged  eyes;  and  if  I  unbandage  them  I  look 
everything  through  and  through,  and  when 
T  gaze  sharply  at  anything  it  catches  fire  and 
bursts  into  flame,  and  what  can't  bum  splits 


So       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

int.)  pieces.  For  this  reason  my  name  is 
Sharpsight.''  He  then  turned  to  a  rock  op- 
posite, removed  the  bandage,  and  fixed  his 
flaming  eyes  upon  it;  the  rock  began  to 
crackle,  pieces  flew  on  every  side,  and  in  a 
very  short  time  nothing  of  it  remained  but 
a  heap  of  sand,  on  which  something  gHttered 
like  fire.  Sharpsight  went  to  fetch  it,  and 
brought  it  to  the  prince.     It  was  pure  gold. 

^^Heigho!  you're  a  fellow  that  money  can't 
purchase!"  said  the  prince.  ^^He  is  a  fool 
who  wouldn't  make  use  of  your  services,  and 
if  you  have  such  good  sight,  look  and  tell  me 
whether  it  is  far  to  the  iron  castle,  and  what 
is  now  going  on  there?"  "If  you  rode  by 
yourself,  sir,"  answered  Sharpsight,  "maybe 
you  wouldn't  get  there  within  a  year;  but 
with  us  you'll  arrive  to-day  —  they're  just 
getting  supper  ready  for  us."  "And  what  is 
my  bride  doing?" 

"An  iron  lattice  is  before  her, 
In  a  tower  that's  high 
She  doth  sit  and  sigh, 
A  wizard  watch  and  ward  keeps  o'er  her." 

The  prince  cried,  "Whoever  is  well  disposed, 
help  me  to  set  her  free!"    They  all  promised 


Long,  Broody  and  Sharpsight  5i 

to  help  him.  They  guided  him  among  the 
gray  rocks  through  the  breach  that  Sharp- 
sight  had  made  in  them  with  his  eyes,  and 
farther  and  farther  on  through  rocks,  through 
high  mountains  and  deep  forests,  and  wherever 
there  was  any  obstacle  in  the  road,  forthwith 
it  was  removed  by  the  three  comrades.  And 
when  the  sun  was  decKning  toward  the  west, 
the  mountains  began  to  become  lower,  the 
forests  less  dense,  and  the  rocks  concealed 
themselves  amongst  the  heath;  and  when  it 
was  almost  on  the  point  of  setting,  the  prince 
saw  not  far  before  him  an  iron  castle;  and 
when  it  was  actually  setting,  he  rode  by  an 
iron  bridge  to  the  gate,  and  as  soon  as  it  had 
set,  up  rose  the  iron  bridge  of  itself,  the  gate 
closed  with  a  single  movement,  and  the  prince 
and  his  companions  were  captives  in  the  iron 
castle. 

When  they  had  looked  round  the  court, 
the  prince  put  his  horse  up  in  the  stable, 
where  everything  was  ready  for  it,  and  then 
they  went  into  the  castle.  In  the  court,  in 
the  stable,  in  the  castle  hall,  and  in  the  rooms, 
they  saw  in  the  twilight  many  richly-dressed 
people,  gentlemen  and  servants,  but  not  one 
of    them   stirred  —  they   were  all   turned   to 


82       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

stone.  They  went  through  several  rooms, 
and  came  into  the  supper-room.  This  was 
briUiantly  lighted  up,  and  in  the  midst  was 
a  table,  and  on  it  plenty  of  good  meats  and 
drinks,  and  covers  were  laid  for  four  persons. 
They  waited  and  waited,  thinking  that  some 
one  would  come:  but  when  nobody  came  for 
a  long  time,  they  sat  down  and  ate  and  drank 
what  the  palate  fancied. 

When  they  had  done  eating,  they  looked 
about  to  find  where  to  sleep.  Thereupon  the 
door  flew  open  unexpectedly  all  at  once,  and 
into  the  room  came  the  wizard;  a  bent  old 
man  in  a  long  black  garb,  with  a  bald  head, 
a  gray  beard  down  to  his  knees,  and  three 
iron  hoops  instead  of  a  girdle.  By  the  hand 
he  led  a  beautiful,  very  beautiful  damsel, 
dressed  in  white;  she  had  a  silver  girdle 
round  her  waist,  and  a  crown  of  pearls  on  her 
head,  but  was  pale  and  sad,  as  if  she  had  risen 
from  the  grave.  The  prince  recognized  her 
at  once,  sprang  forward,  and  went  to  meet 
her;  but  before  he  could  utter  a  word  the 
wizard  addressed  him:  "I  know  for  what 
you  have  come;  you  want  to  take  the  princess 
away.  Well,  be  it  so!  Take  her,  if  you  can 
keep  her  in  sight  for  three  nights,  so  that  she 


Long,  Broad,  and  Sharpsight  2>^ 

doesn't  vanish  from  you.  If  she  vanishes, 
you  will  be  turned  into  stone  as  well  as  your 
three  servants;  like  all  who  have  come  before 
you."  He  then  motioned  the  princess  to  a 
seat  and  departed. 

The  prince  could  not  take  his  eyes  off  the 
princess,  so  beautiful  was  she.  He  began  to 
talk  to  her,  and  asked  her  all  manner  of  ques- 
tions, but  she  neither  answered  nor  smiled, 
nor  looked  at  any  one  more  than  if  she  had 
been  of  marble.  He  sat  down  by  her,  and 
determined  not  to  sleep  all  night  long  lest 
she  should  vanish  from  him,  and,  to  make 
surer,  Long  extended  himself  Hke  a  strap, 
and  wound  himself  round  the  whole  room 
along  the  wall;  Broad  posted  himself  in  the 
doorway,  swelled  himself  up,  and  stopped  it  up 
so  tight  that  not  even  a  mouse  could  have 
slipped  through;  while  sharpsight  placed  him- 
self against  a  pillar  in  the  midst  of  the  room 
on  the  look-out.  But  after  a  time  they  all 
began  to  nod,  fell  asleep,  and  slept  the  whole 
night,  just  as  if  the  wizard  had  thrown  them 
into  the  water. 

In  the  morning,  when  it  began  to  dawn, 
the  prince  was  the  first  to  wake,  but  —  as 
if  a  knife  had  been  thrust  into  his  heart  — ■ 


84       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

the  princess  was  gone!  He  forthwith  awoke 
his  servants,  and  asked  what  was  to  be  done. 
"Never  mind,  sir,''  said  Sharpsight,  and 
looked  sharply  out  through  the  window,  "1 
see  her  already.  A  hundred  miles  hence  is 
a  forest,  in  the  midst  of  the  forest  an  old  oak, 
and  on  the  top  of  the  oak  an  acorn,  and  she 
is  that  acorn.''  Long  immediately  took  him 
on  his  shoulders,  extended  himself,  and  went 
ten  miles  at  a  step,  while  Sharpsight  showed 
him  the  way. 

No  more  time  elapsed  than  would  have 
been  wanted  to  move  once  round  a  cottage 
before  they  were  back  again,  and  Long  de- 
livered the  acorn  to  the  prince.  "Sir,  let  it 
fall  on  the  ground."  The  prince  let  it  fall 
and  that  moment  the  princess  stood  beside 
him.  And  when  the  sun  began  to  show  itself 
beyond  the  mountains,  the  folding  doors 
flew  open  with  a  crash,  and  the  wizard  entered 
the  room  and  smiled  spitefully;  but  when  he 
saw  the  princess  he  fro^vned,  growled,  and 
bang!  one  of  the  iron  hoops  which  he  wore 
splintered  and  sprang  off  him.  He  then  took 
the  damsel  by  the  hand  and  led  her  away. 

The  whole  day  after  the  prince  had  nothing 
to  do  but  walk  up  and  down  the  castle,  and 


Long,  Broad,  and  Sharpsight  85 

round  about  the  castle,  and  look  at  the  wonder- 
ful things  that  were  there.  It  was  everywhere 
as  if  life  had  been  lost  in  a  single  moment. 
In  one  hall  he  saw  a  prince,  who  held  in 
both  hands  a  brandished  sword,  as  if  he  in- 
tended to  cleave  somebody  in  twain;  but  the 
blow  never  fell:  he  had  been  turned  into 
stone.  In  one  chamber  was  a  knight  turned 
into  stone,  just  as  if  he  had  been  fleeing  from 
some  one  in  terror,  and,  stumbling  on  the 
threshold,  had  taken  a  downward  direction, 
but  not  fallen.  Under  the  chimney  sat  a 
servant,  who  held  in  one  hand  a  piece  of  roast 
meat,  and  with  the  other  Hfted  a  mouthful 
toward  his  mouth,  which  never  reached  it; 
when  it  was  just  in  front  of  his  mouth,  he  had 
also  been  turned  to  stone.  Many  others  he 
saw  there  turned  to  stone,  each  in  the  position 
in  which  he  was  when  the  wizard  said,  "Be 
turned  into  stone."  He  likewise  saw  many 
fine  horses  turned  to  stone,  and  in  the  castle 
and  round  the  castle  all  was  desolate  and  dead; 
there  were  trees,  but  without  leaves;  there 
were  meadows,  but  without  grass;  there  was 
a  river  but  it  did  not  flow;  nowhere  was  there 
even  a  singing  bird,  or  a  flower,  the  offspring 
of  the  ground,  or  a  white  fish  in  the  water. 


86       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

Morning,  noon,  and  evening  the  prince  and 
his  companions  found  good  and  abundant 
entertainment  in  the  castle;  the  viands  came 
of  themselves,  the  wine  poured  itself  out. 
After  supper  the  folding  doors  opened  again, 
and  the  wizard  brought  in  the  princess  for 
the  prince  to  guard.  And  although  they  all 
determined  to  exert  themselves  with  all  their 
might  not  to  fall  asleep,  yet  it  was  of  no  use, 
fall  asleep  again  they  did.  And  when  the 
prince  awoke  at  dawn  and  saw  the  princess 
had  vanished,  he  jumped  up  and  pulled  Sharp- 
sight  by  the  arm,  ^^Hey!  get  up,  Sharpsight, 
do  you  know  where  the  princess  is?''  He 
rubbed  his  eyes,  looked,  and  said:  "I  see  her. 
There's  a  mountain  two  hundred  miles  off, 
and  in  the  mountain  a  rock,  and  in  the  rock 
a  precious  stone,  and  she's  that  precious 
stone.  If  Long  carries  me  thither,  we  shall 
obtain  her." 

Long  took  him  at  once  on  his  shoulders, 
extended  himself,  and  went  twenty  miles  at 
a  step.  Sharpsight  fixed  his  flaming  eyes  on 
the  mountain,  the  mountain  crumbled,  and 
the  rock  in  it  split  into  a  thousand  pieces, 
and  amongst  them  glittered  the  precious 
stone.     They  took  it  up  and  brought  it  to 


Long,  Broad  J  and  Sharp  sight  87 

the  prince,  and  when  he  let  it  fall  on  the  ground, 
the  princess  again  stood  there.  When  after- 
ward the  wizard  came  and  saw  her  there, 
his  eyes  flashed  with  spite,  and  bang!  again 
an  iron  hoop  cracked  upon  him  and  flew  off. 
He  growled  and  led  the  princess  out  of  the 
room. 

That  day  all  was  again  as  it  had  been  the 
day  before.  After  supper  the  wizard  brought 
the  princess  in  again,  looked  the  prince  keenly 
in  the  face,  and  scornfully  uttered  the  words, 
"It  will  be  seen  who's  a  match  for  whom; 
whether  you  are  victorious  or  I,''  and  with 
that  he  departed.  This  night  they  all  exerted 
themselves  still  more  to  avoid  going  to  sleep. 
They  wouldn't  even  sit  down,  they  wanted 
to  walk  about  all  night  long,  but  all  in  vain; 
they  were  bewitched;  one  fell  asleep  after 
the  other  as  he  walked  and  the  princess  van- 
ished away  from  them. 

In  the  morning  the  prince  again  awoke 
earliest,  and,  when  he  didn't  see  the  princess, 
woke  Sharpsight.  "Hey!  get  up,  Sharpsight! 
look  where  the  princess  is!"  Sharpsight 
looked  out  for  a  long  time.  "Oh,  sir,"  says 
he,  "she  is  a  long  way  off,  a  long  way  off! 
Three   hundred  miles  off  is  a  black  sea,  and 


88       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

in  the  midst  of  the  sea  a  shell  on  the  bottom, 
and  in  the  shell  is  a  gold  ring,  and  she's  the 
ring.  But  never  mind!  we  shall  obtain  her, 
but  to-day  Long  must  take  Broad  with  him 
as  well;  we  shall  want  him.''  Long  took 
Sharpsight  on  one  shoulder,  and  Broad  on  the 
other,  and  went  thirty  miles  at  a  step.  When 
they  came  to  the  black  sea,  Sharpsight  showed 
him  where  he  must  reach  into  the  water  for 
the  shell.  Long  extended  his  hand  as  far 
as  he  could,  but  could  not  reach  the  bottom. 

"Wait,  comrades!  wait  only  a  littb  and 
I'll  help  you,"  said  Broad,  and  swelled  him- 
self out  as  far  as  his  paunch  would  stretch; 
he  then  lay  down  on  the  shore  and  drank. 
In  a  very  short  time  the  water  fell  so  low  that 
Long  easily  reached  the  bottom  and  took  the 
shell  out  of  the  sea.  Out  of  it  he  extracted 
the  ring,  took  his  comrades  on  his  shoulders 
and  hastened  back.  But  on  the  way  he  found 
it  a  little  difficult  to  run  with  Broad,  who  had 
half  a  sea  of  water  inside  him,  so  he  cast  him 
from  his  shoulder  on  to  the  ground  in  a  wide 
valley.  Thump  he  went  like  a  sack  let  fall 
from  a  tower,  and  in  a  moment  the  whole 
valley  was  under  water  like  a  vast  lake.  Broad 
himself  barely  crawled  out  of  it. 


Long,  Broad,  and  Sharpsight  89 

Meanwhile  the  prince  was  in  great  trouble 
in  the  castle.  The  dawn  began  to  display 
itself  over  the  mountains,  and  his  servants 
had  not  returned;  the  more  brilHantly  the 
rays  ascended,  the  greater  was  his  anxiety; 
a  deadly  perspiration  came  out  upon  his  fore- 
head. Soon  the  sun  showed  itself  in  the  east 
like  a  thin  slip  of  flame  —  and  then  with  a 
loud  crash  the  door  flew  open,  and  on  the 
threshold  stood  the  wizard.  He  looked  round 
the  room,  and  seeing  the  princess  was  not 
there,  laughed  a  hateful  laugh  and  entered 
the  room.  But  just  at  that  moment,  pop! 
the  window  flew  in  pieces,  the  gold  ring  fell 
on  the  floor,  and  in  an  instant  there  stood  the 
princess  again.  Sharpsight,  seeing  what  was 
going  on  in  the  castle,  and  in  what  danger 
his  master  was,  told  Long.  Long  made  a  step, 
and  threw  the  ring  through  the  window  into 
the  room.  The  wizard  roared  with  rage  till  the 
castle  quaked,  and  then,  bang!  went  the  third 
iron  hoop  that  was  round  his  waist,  and  sprang 
off  him;  the  wizard  turned  into  a  raven,  and 
flew  out  and  away  through  the  shattered 
window. 

Then,  and  not  till  then,  did  the  beautiful 
damsel  speak  and  thank  the  prince  for  setting 


90       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

her  free,  and  blushed  Hke  a  rose.  In  the  castle 
and  round  the  castle  everything  became  alive 
again  at  once.  He  who  was  holding  in  the 
hall  the  outstretched  sword,  swung  it  into 
the  air,  which  whistled  again,  and  then  returned 
it  to  its  sheath;  he  who  was  stumbling  on  the 
threshold,  fell  on  the  ground,  but  immediately- 
got  up  again  and  felt  his  nose  to  see  whether 
it  was  still  entire;  he  who  was  sitting  under 
the  chimney  put  the  piece  of  meat  into  his 
mouth  and  went  on  eating;  and  thus  every- 
body completed  what  he  had  begun  doing, 
and  at  the  point  where  he  had  left  off.  In 
the  stables  the  horses  merrily  stamped  and 
snorted,  the  trees  round  the  castle  became 
green  hke  periwinkles,  the  meadows  were  fuU 
of  variegated  flowers,  high  in  the  air  warbled 
the  skylark,  and  abundance  of  small  fishes 
appeared  in  the  clear  river.  Ever)rvvhere  was 
life,  everywhere  enjoyment. 

Meanwhile  a  number  of  gentlemen  assembled 
in  the  room  where  the  prince  was,  and  all 
thanked  him  for  their  liberation.  But  he 
said:  ^'You  have  nothing  to  thank  me  for; 
if  it  had  not  been  for  my  trusty  servants  Long, 
Broad,  and  Sharpsight,  I  too,  should  have 
been  what  you  were.''    He  then  immediately 


Long,  Broad,  and  Sharp  sight  91 

started  on  his  way  home  to  the  old  king,  his 
father,  with  his  bride  and  servants.  On  the 
way  they  met  Broad  and  took  him  with  them. 
The  old  king  wept  for  joy  at  the  success 
of  his  son;  he  had  thought  he  would  return 
no  more.  Soon  afterward  there  was  a  grand 
wedding,  the  festivities  of  which  lasted  three 
weeks;  all  the  gentlemen  that  the  prince  had 
liberated  were  invited.  After  the  wedding 
Long,  Broad,  and  Sharpsight  announced  to 
the  young  king  that  they  were  going  again 
into  the  world  to  look  for  work.  The  young 
king  tried  to  persuade  them  to  stay  with 
him.  "I  will  give  you  everything  you  want, 
as  long  as  you  live,"  said  he;  "you  needn't 
work  at  all."  But  they  didn't  like  such  an 
idle  Kfe,  took  leave  of  him,  went  away,  and 
have  been  ever  since  knocking  about  some- 
where or  other  in  the  world. 


XI 

INTELLIGENCE  AND  LUCK 

ONCE  upon  a  time  Luck  met  Intelligence 
on  a  garden-seat.  '^Make  room  for 
me!"  said  Luck.  Intelligence  was  then  as 
yet  inexperienced,  and  didn't  know  who  ought 
to  make  room  for  whom.  He  said:  "Why- 
should  I  make  room  for  you?  you're  no  better 
than  I."  "He's  the  better  man,"  answered 
Luck,  "who  performs  most.  See  you  there 
yon  peasant's  son  who's  ploughing  in  the 
field?  Enter  into  him,  and  if  he  gets  on  better 
through  you  than  through  me,  I'll  always 
submissively  make  way  for  you,  whensoever 
and  wheresoever  we  meet. ' '  Intelligence  agreed, 
and  entered  at  once  into  the  ploughboy's 
head.  As  soon  as  the  ploughboy  felt  that  he 
had  intelligence  in  his  head,  he  began  to  think: 
"Why  must  I  follow  the  plough  to  the  day  of 
my  death?  I  can  go  somewhere  else  and 
make  my  fortune  more  easily."  He  left  off 
ploughing,  put  up  the  plough,  and  drove  home. 

92 


Intelligence  and  Luck  93 

'^ Daddy,''  says  he,  "I  don't  like  this  peasant's 
life;  I'd  rather  learn  to  be  a  gardener."  His 
father  said:  ^'What  ails  you,  Vanek?  have  you 
lost  your  wits?"  However,  he  bethought 
himself  and  said:  "Well,  if  you  will,  learn, 
and  God  be  with  you!  Your  brother  will  be 
heir  to  the  cottage  after  me,"  Vanek  lost 
the  cottage,  but  he  didn't  care  for  that,  but 
went  and  put  himself  apprentice  to  the  king's 
gardener.  For  every  little  that  the  gardener 
showed  him,  Vanek  comprehended  ever  so 
much  more.  Ere  long  he  didn't  even  obey 
the  gardener's  orders  as  to  how  he  ought  to 
do  anything,  but  did  everything  his  own  way. 
At  first  the  gardener  was  angry,  but,  seeing 
everything  thus  getting  on  better,  he  was 
content.  "I  see  that  you've  more  inteUi- 
gence  than  I,"  said  he,  and  henceforth  let 
Vanek  garden  as  he  thought  fit.  In  no  long 
space  of  time  Vanek  made  the  garden  so 
beautiful  that  the  king  took  great  delight 
in  it,  and  frequently  walked  in  it  with  the 
queen  and  with  his  only  daughter. 

The  princess  was  a  very  beautiful  damsel, 
but  ever  since  she  was  twelve  years  old  she 
had  ceased  speaking,  and  no  one  ever  heard 
a  single  word  from  her.     The  king  was  much 


94       Polk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

grieved,  and  caused  a  proclamation  to  be  made 
that  whoever  should  bring  it  to  pass  that  she 
should  speak  again,  should  be  her  husband. 
Many  young  kings,  princes,  and  other  great 
lords  announced  themselves  one  after  the 
other,  but  all  went  away  as  they  had  come; 
no  one  succeeded  in  causing  her  to  speak. 
"Why  shouldn't  I  try  my  luck?"  thought 
Vanek;  "who  knows  whether  I  mayn't  suc- 
ceed in  bringing  her  to  answer  when  I  ask 
her  a  question?"  He  at  once  caused  himself 
to  be  announced  at  the  palace,  and  the  king 
and  his  councillors  conducted  him  into  the 
room  where  the  princess  was.  The  king's 
daughter  had  a  pretty  little  dog,  and  was  very 
fond  of  him,  because  he  was  so  clever,  under- 
standing everything  that  she  wanted.  When 
Vanek  went  into  the  room  with  the  king  and 
his  councillors,  he  made  as  if  he  didn't  even 
see  the  princess,  but  turned  to  the  dog  and 
said:  "I  have  heard,  doggie,  that  you  are 
very  clever,  and  I  come  to  you  for  advice. 
We  are  three  companions  in  travel,  a  sculptor, 
a  tailor,  and  myself.  Once  upon  a  time  we 
were  going  through  a  forest  and  were  obliged 
to  pass  the  night  in  it.  To  be  safe  from  wolves, 
we  made  a  fire,  and  agreed  to  keep  watch  one 


Intelligence  and  Luck  95 

after  the  other.  The  sculptor  kept  watch 
first,  and  for  amusement  to  kill  time  took 
a  log  and  carved  a  damsel  out  of  it.  When 
it  was  finished,  he  woke  the  tailor  to  keep  watch 
in  his  turn.  The  tailor,  seeing  the  wooden 
damsel,  asked  what  it  meant.  'As  you  see/ 
said  the  sculptor,  T  was  weary,  and  didn't 
know  what  to  do  with  myself,  so  I  carved  a 
damsel  out  of  a  log;  if  you  find  time  hang 
heavy  on  your  hands,  you  can  dress  her.* 
The  tailor  at  once  took  out  his  scissors,  needle 
and  thread,  cut  out  the  clothes,  stitched  away, 
and,  when  they  were  ready,  dressed  the  damsel 
in  them.  He  then  called  me  to  come  and  keep 
watch.  I,  too,  asked  him  what  the  meaning 
of  all  this  was.  'As  you  see,'  said  the  tailor, 
'the  sculptor  found  time  hang  heavy  on  his 
hands  and  carved  a  damsel  out  of  a  log,  and  I 
for  the  same  reason  clothed  her;  and  if  you 
find  time  hanging  on  your  hands,  you  can 
teach  her  to  speak.'  And  by  morning  dawn 
I  had  actually  taught  her  to  speak.  But  in 
the  morning  when  my  companions  woke  up, 
each  wanted  to  possess  the  damsel.  The 
sculptor  said,  T  made  her; '  the  tailor,  'I 
clothed  her.'  I,  too,  maintained  my  right. 
Tell  me,  therefore,  doggie,  to  which  of  us  the 


96       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

damsel  belongs.'^  The  dog  said  nothing,  but 
instead  of  the  dog  the  princess  repKed:  "To 
whom  can  she  belong  but  to  yourself?  What's 
the  good  of  the  sculptor's  damsel  without 
Kfe?  What's  the  good  of  the  tailor's  dressing 
without  speech?  You  gave  her  the  best  gift> 
life  and  speech,  and  therefore  she  by  right 
belongs  to  you."  "You  have  passed  your 
own  sentence,"  said  Vanek;  "I  have  given 
you  speech  again  and  a  new  life,  and  you 
therefore  by  right  belong  to  me."  Then  said 
one  of  the  king's  councillors:  "His  Royal 
Grace  will  give  you  a  plenteous  rev/ard  for 
succeeding  in  unloosing  his  daughter's  tongue; 
but  you  cannot  have  her  to  wife,  as  you  are  of 
mean  lineage."  The  king  said:  "You  are 
of  mean  Hneage;  I  will  give  you  a  plenteous 
reward  instead  of  our  daughter."  But  Vanek 
wouldn't  hear  of  any  other  reward,  and  said: 
"The  king  promised  without  any  exception, 
that  whoever  caused  his  daughter  to  speak 
again  should  be  her  husband.  A  king's  word 
is  law;  and  if  the  king  wants  others  to  observe 
his  laws,  he  must  first  keep  them  himself. 
Therefore  the  king  must  give  me  his  daughter." 
"Seize  and  bind  him!"  shouted  the  councillor, 
"Whoever  says  the  king  must  do  anything. 


Intelligence  and  Luck  97 

offers  an  insult  to  his  Majesty,  and  is  worthy 
of  death.  May  it  please  your  Majesty  to 
order  this  malefactor  to  be  executed  with  the 
sword?"  The  king  said:  "Let  him  be  exe- 
cuted." Vanek  was  immediately  bound  and 
led  to  execution.  When  they  came  to  the 
place  of  execution  Luck  was  there  waiting 
for  him,  and  said  secretly  to  Intelligence: 
"See  how  this  man  has  got  on  through  you, 
till  he  has  to  lose  his  head!  Make  way,  and 
let  me  take  your  place!"  As  soon  as  Luck 
entered  Vanek,  the  executioner^s  sword  broke 
against  the  scaffold,  just  as  if  some  one  had 
snapped  it;  and  before  they  brought  him 
another,  up  rode  a  trumpeter  on  horseback 
from  the  city,  galloping  as  swift  as  a  bird, 
trumpeted  merrily,  and  waved  a  white  flag,  and 
after  him  came  the  royal  carriage  for  Vanek. 
This  is  what  had  happened:  The  princess 
had  told  her  father  at  home  that  Vanek  had 
but  spoken  the  truth,  and  the  king's  word 
ought  not  to  be  broken.  If  Vanek  were  of 
mean  lineage  the  king  could  easily  make  him  a 
prince.  The  king  said:  "You're  right;  let 
him  be  a  prince!"  The  royal  carriage  was 
immediately  sent  for  Vanek,  and  the  coun- 
cillor who  had  irritated  the  king  against  him 


9^       Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

was  executed  in  his  stead.  Afterward,  when 
Vanek  and  the  princess  were  going  together 
in  a  carriage  from  the  wedding,  IntelHgence 
happened  to  be  somewhere  on  the  road,  and 
seeing  that  he  couldn't  help  meeting  Luck, 
bent  his  head  and  slipped  on  one  side,  just 
as  if  cold  water  had  been  thrown  upon  him. 
And  from  that  time  forth  it  is  said  that  Intel- 
ligence has  always  given  a  wide  berth  to  Luck 
whenever  he  has  had  to  meet  him. 


xn 

GEORGE  WITH  THE  GOAT 

THERE  was  a  king  who  had  a  daughter 
who  never  could  be  induced  to  laugh; 
she  was  always  sad.  So  the  king  proclaimed 
that  she  should  be  given  to  any  one  who  could 
cause  her  to  laugh.  There  was  also  a  shepherd 
who  had  a  son  named  George.  He  said: 
'* Daddy!  I,  too,  will  go  to  see  whether  I  can 
make  her  laugh.  I  want  nothing  from  you 
but  the  goat."  His  father  said,  "Well,  go." 
The  goat  was  of  such  a  nature  that,  when  her 
master  wished,  she  detained  everybody,  and 
that  person  was  obliged  to  stay  by  her. 

So  he  took  the  goat  and  went,  and  met  a 
man  who  had  a  foot  on  his  shoulder.  George 
said:  "  Why  have  you  a  foot  on  your  shoulder?" 
He  rephed:  "If  I  take  it  off,  I  leap  a  hundred 
miles."  "Whither  are  you  going?"  "I  am 
going  in  search  of  service,  to  see  if  any  one 
wiU  take  me."     "Well,  come  with  us." 

They  went  on,  and  again  met  a  man  who 

99 


loo     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

had  a  bandage  on  his  eyes.  "Why  have  you  a 
bandage  on  your  eyes?"  He  answered,  "If 
I  remove  the  bandage,  I  see  a  hundred  miles.'* 
"Whither  are  you  going?"  "I  am  going  in 
search  of  service,  if  you  will  take  me."  "Yes, 
I'll  take  you.     Come  also  with  me." 

They  went  on  a  bit  farther,  and  met  another 
fellow,  who  had  a  bottle  under  his  arm,  and, 
instead  of  a  stopper,  held  his  thumb  in  it. 
"Why  do  you  hold  your  thumb  there?"  "If 
I  pull  it  out,  I  squirt  a  hundred  miles,  and 
besprinkle  everything  that  I  choose.  If  you 
like,  take  me  also  into  your  service;  it  may 
be  to  your  advantage  and  ours  too."  George 
replied:  "Well,  come,  too!" 

Afterward  they  came  to  the  town  where 
the  king  Hved,  and  bought  a  silken  riband 
for  the  goat.  They  came  to  an  inn,  and 
orders  had  already  been  given  there  before- 
hand, that  when  such  people  came,  they  were 
to  give  them  what  they  liked  to  eat  and  drink 
—  the  king  would  pay  for  aU.  So  they  tied 
the  goat  with  that  very  riband  and  placed 
it  in  the  innkeeper's  room  to  be  taken  care  of, 
and  he  put  it  in  the  side  room  where  his  daugh- 
ters slept.  The  innkeeper  had  three  maiden 
daughters,    who    were    not    yet    asleep.     So 


George  with  the  Goat  loi 

Manka  said:  "Oh!  if  I,  too,  could  have  such 
a  riband!  I  will  go  and  unfasten  it  from  that 
goat."  The  second,  Dodla,  said:  ''Don't;  he'll 
find  it  out  in  the  morning."  But  she  went  not- 
withstanding. And  when  Manka  did  not  return 
for  a  long  time,  the  third,  Kate,  said:  "Go, 
fetch  her."  So  Dodla  went,  and  gave  Manka 
a  pat  on  the  back.  "Come,  leave  it  alone!*" 
And  now  she,  too,  was  unable  to  withdraw 
herself  from  her.  So  Kate  said:  "Come,  don't 
unfasten  it !"  Kate  went  and  gave  Dodla  a  pat 
on  the  petticoat;  and  now  she,  too,  couldn't 
get  away,  but  was  obliged  to  stay  by  her. 

In  the  morning  George  made  haste  and  went 
for  the  goat,  and  led  the  whole  set  away  — 
Kate,  Dodla,  and  Manka.  The  innkeeper 
was  stiU  asleep.  They  went  through  the 
village,  and  the  judge  looked  out  of  a  window 
and  said,  "Fie,  Kate!  what's  this?  what's 
this?"  He  went  and  took  her  by  the  hand, 
wishing  to  pull  her  away,  but  remained 
also  by  her.  After  this,  a  cowherd  drove 
some  cows  through  a  narrow  street,  and  the 
bull  came  rushing  round;  he  stuck  fast,  and 
George  led  him,  too,  in  the  procession. 

Thus  they  afterward  came  in  front  of  the 
castle,  and    the    servants  came  out-of-doors; 


I02     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

and  when  they  saw  such  things  they  went 
and  told  the  king.  ^^Oh,  sire,  we  have  such  a 
spectacle  here;  we  have  already  had  all  man- 
ner of  masquerades,  but  this  has  never  been 
here  yet."  So  they  immediately  led  the  king's 
daughter  to  the  square  in  front  of  the  castle, 
and  she  looked  and  laughed  till  the  castle 
shook. 

Now  they  asked  him  what  sort  of  person 
he  was.  He  said  that  he  was  a  shepherd's 
son,  and  was  named  George.  They  said  that 
it  could  not  be  done;  for  he  was  of  mean 
lineage,  and  they  could  not  give  him  the  dam- 
sel; but  he  must  accomplish  something  more 
for  them.  ^  He  said,  ''\Vhat?''  They  repHed 
that  there  was  a  spring  yonder,  a  hundred 
miles  off;  if  he  brought  a  goblet  of  water 
from  it  in  a  minute,  then  he  should  obtain  the 
damsel.  So  George  said  to  the  man  who  had 
the  foot  on  his  shoulder:  ^^You  said  that  if 
you  took  the  foot  down,  you  could  jump  a 
hundred  miles.''  He  repHed:  "I'll  easily  do 
that."  ■  He  took  the  foot  down,  jumped,  and 
was  there.  But  after  this  there  was  only 
a  very  little  time  to  spare,  and  by  then  he 
ought  to  have  been  back.  So  George  said 
to  the  other:  "You  said  that  if  you  removed 


George  with  the  Goat  103 

the  bandage  from  your  eyes,  you  could  see  a 
hundred  miles.  Peep  and  see  what  is  going 
on.''  "Ah,  sir!  Goodness  gracious!  he's  fallen 
asleep!"  "That  will  be  a  bad  job,"  said 
George;  "the  time  will  be  up.  You,  third 
man,  you  said  if  you  pulled  your  thumb  out, 
you  could  squirt  a  hundred  miles;  be  quick 
and  squirt  thither,  that  he  may  get  up.  And 
you,  look  whether  he  is  moving,  or  what." 
"Oh,  sir,  he's  getting  up  now;  he's  knocking 
the  dust  off;  he's  drawing  the  water."  He 
then  gave  a  jump,  and  was  there  exactly  in 
time. 

After  this  they  said  that  he  must  perform  one 
task  more;  that  yonder,  in  a  rock,  was  a  wild 
beast,  a  unicorn,  of  such  a  nature  that  he 
destroyed  a  great  many  of  their  people;  if 
he  cleared  him  out  of  the  world  he  should 
obtain  the  damsel.  So  he  took  his  people 
and  went  into  the  forest.  They  came  to  a 
firwood.  There  were  three  wild  beasts,  and 
three  lairs  had  been  formed  by  wallowing  as 
they  lay.  Two  did  nothing:  but  the  third 
destroyed  the  people.  So  they  took  some 
stones  and  some  pine-cones  in  their  pockets, 
and  climbed  up  into  a  tree;  and  when  the 
beasts  lay  down,  they  dropped  a  stone  down 


I04     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

iipon  that  one  which  was  the  unicorn.  He 
said  to  the  next:  "Be  quiet;  don't  butt  me." 
It  said:  "I'm  not  doing  anything  to  you.'' 
Again  they  let  a  stone  fall  from  above  upon  the 
Hinicorn.  "Be  quiet!  you've  already  done  it 
to  me  twice."  "Indeed,  I'm  doing  nothing 
to  you."  So  they  attacked  each  other  and 
fought  together.  The  unicorn  wanted  to  pierce 
the  second  beast  through;  but  it  jumped  out 
of  the  way,  and  he  rushed  so  violently  after 
it,  that  he  struck  his  horn  into  a  tree,  and 
couldn't  pull  it  out  quickly.  So  they  sprang 
speedily  down  from  the  fir,  and  the  other  two 
beasts  ran  away  and  escaped,  but  they  cut 
off  the  head  of  the  third,  the  unicorn,  took 
it  up,  and  carried  it  to  the  castle. 

Now  those  in  the  castle  saw  that  George  had 
again  accomplished  that  task.  "  What,  prithee, 
shall  we  do?  Perhaps  we  must  after  all  give 
him  the  damsel!"  "No,  sire,"  said  one  of 
the  attendants,  "that  cannot  be;  he  is  too 
lowborn  to  obtain  a  king's  daughter!  On 
the  contrary,  we  must  clear  him  out  of  the 
world."  So  the  king  ordered  them  to  note 
his  words,  what  he  should  say.  There  was 
a  hired  female  servant  there,  and  she  said  to 
him:  "George,  it  will  be  evil  for  you  to-day; 


George  with  the  Goat  105 

they're  going  to  clear  you  out  of  the  world." 
He  answered:  "Oh,  I'm  not  afraid.  When 
I  was  only  just  twelve  years  old,  I  killed  twelve 
of  them  at  one  blow!''  But  this  was  the 
fact:  when  his  mother  was  baking  a  flat-cake, 
a  dozen  flies  settled  upon  her,  and  he  killed 
them  all  at  a  single  blow. 

When  they  heard  this,  they  said:  "Nothing 
else  will  do  but  we  must  shoot  him.''  So  they 
drew  up  the  soldiers,  and  said  they  would 
hold  a  review  in  his  honour,  for  they  would 
celebrate  the  wedding  in  the  square  before 
the  castle.  Then  they  conducted  him  thither, 
and  the  soldiers  were  already  going  to  let  fly 
at  him.  Eut  George  said  to  the  man  who 
held  his  thumb  in  the  bottle  in  the  place  of 
a  stopper:  "You  said,  if  you  pulled  your 
thumb  out,  you  could  besprinlde  everything. 
Pull  it  out  — quick!'  "Oh,  sir,  I'll  easily 
perform  that.''  So  he  pulled  out  his  thumb, 
and  gave  them  all  such  a  sprinkKng  that  they 
were  all  blind,  and  not  one  could  see. 

So,  when  they  perceived  that  nothing  else 
was  to  be  done,  they  told  him  to  go,  for  they 
would  give  him  the  damsel.  Then  they  gave 
him  a  handsome  royal  robe,  and  the  wedding 
took  place.    I.  too,  was  at  the  wedding;  they 


io6     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

had  music  there,  sang,  ate,  and  drank;  there 
was  meat,  there  were  cheesecakes,  and  baskets 
full  of  everything,  and  buckets  full  of  strong 
waters.  To-day  I  went,  yesterday  I  came; 
I  found  an  tgg  among  the  tree-stumps;  I 
knocked  it  against  somebody's  head,  and 
gave  him  a  bald  place,  and  he's  got  it  still. 


XIII 
THE   WONDERFUL   HAIR 

THERE  was  a  man  who  was  very  poor, 
but  so  well  supplied  with  children 
that  he  was  utterly  unable  to  maintain  them, 
and  one  morning  more  than  once  prepared 
to  kill  them,  in  order  not  to  see  their  misery 
in  dying  of  hunger,  but  his  wife  prevented 
him.  One  night  a  child  came  to  him  in  his 
sleep,  and  said  to  him:  "Man!  I  see  that  you 
are  making  up  your  mind  to  destroy  and  to 
kill  your  poor  little  children,  and  I  know  that 
you  are  distressed  thereat;  but  in  the  morn- 
ing you  will  find  under  your  pillow  a  mirror, 
a  red  kerchief,  and  an  embroidered  pocket- 
handkerchief;  take  all  three  secretly  and  tell 
nobody;  then  go  to  such  a  hill;  by  it  you 
will  find  a  stream;  go  along  it  till  you  come 
to  its  fountain-head;  there  you  will  find  a 
damsel  as  bright  as  the  sun,  with  her  hair 
hanging  down  over  her  back.  Be  on  your 
guard,  that  the  ferocious  she-dragon  do  not 
107 


io8     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

coil  round  you;  do  not  converse  with  her  if 
she  speaks;  for  if  you  converse  with  her,  she 
will  poison  you,  and  turn  you  into  a  fish  or 
something  else,  and  mil  then  devour  you; 
but  if  she  bids  you  examine  her  head,  examine 
it,  and  as  you  turn  over  her  hair,  look,  and 
you  will  find  one  hair  as  red  as  blood;  pull 
it  out  and  run  back  again;  then,  if  she  sus- 
pects and  begins  to  run  after  you,  throw  her 
first  the  embroidered  pocket-handkerchief,  then 
the  kerchief,  and,  lastly,  the  mirror;  then  she 
will  find  occupation  for  herself.  And  sell  that 
hair  to  some  rich  man;  but  don't  let  them 
cheat  you,  for  that  hair  is  worth  countless 
wealth;  and  you  will  thus  enrich  yourself 
and  maintain  your  children." 

When  the  poor  man  awoke,  he  found  every- 
thing under  his  pillow,  just  as  the  child  had 
told  him  in  his  sleep;  and  then  he  went  to 
the  hill.  When  there,  he  found  the  stream^ 
went  on  and  on  alongside  of  it,  till  he  came  to 
the  fountain-head.  Having  looked  about  him 
to  see  where  the  damsel  was,  he  espied  her 
above  a  piece  of  water,  like  sunbeams  threaded 
on  a  needle,  and  she  was  embroidering  at  a 
frame  on  stuff,  the  threads  of  which  were 
3^oung  men's  hair.     As  soon  as  he  saw  her. 


The  Wonderful  Hair  109 

he  made  a  reverence  to  her,  and  she  stood  on 
her  feet  and  questioned  him:  "Whence  are 
you,  unknown  young  man?''  But  he  held 
his  tongue.  She  questioned  him  again:  "Who 
are  you?  Why  have  you  come?"  and  much 
else  of  all  sorts;  but  he  was  as  mute  as  a 
stone,  making  signs  with  his  hands,  as  if  he 
were  deaf  and  wanted  help.  Then  she  told 
him  to  sit  down  on  her  skirt.  He  did  not  wait 
for  any  more  orders,  but  sat  down,  and  she  bent 
down  her  head  to  him,  that  he  might  examine 
it.  Turning  over  the  hair  of  her  head,  as  if 
to  examine  it,  he  was  not  long  in  finding  that 
red  hair,  and  separated  it  from  the  other  hair, 
pulled  it  out,  jumped  off  her  skirt  and  ran 
away  back  as  he  best  could.  She  noticed  it, 
and  ran  at  his  heels  full  speed  after  him. 
He  looked  round,  and  seeing  that  she  was 
about  to  overtake  him,  threw,  as  he  was  told, 
the  embroidered  pocket-handkerchief  on  the 
way,  and  when  she  saw  the  pocket-handker- 
chief she  stooped  and  began  to  overhaul  it  in 
every  direction,  admiring  the  embroidery, 
till  he  had  got  a  good  way  oif .  Then  the  dam- 
sel placed  the  pocket-handkerchief  in  her 
bosom,  and  ran  after  him  again.  When  h? 
saw  that  she  was  about  to  overtake  him,  he 


no      Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

threw  the  red  kerchief,  and  she  again  occupied 
herself,  admiring  and  gazing,  till  the  poor  man 
had  again  got  a  good  way  off.  Then  the 
damsel  became  exasperated,  and  threw  both 
the  pocket-handkerchief  and  the  kerchief  on 
the  way,  and  ran  after  him  in  pursuit.  Again, 
when  he  saw  that  she  was  about  to  overtake 
him,  he  threw  the  mirror.  When  the  damsel 
came  to  the  mirror,  the  like  of  which  she  had 
never  seen  before,  she  lifted  it  up,  and  when 
she  saw  herself  in  it,  not  knowing  that  it  was 
herself,  but  thinking  that  it  was  somebody 
else,  she,  as  it  were,  fell  in  love  with  herself 
in  the  mirror,  and  the  man  got  so  far  off  that 
she  was  no  longer  able  to  overtake  him.  When 
she  saw  that  she  could  not  catch  him,  she  turned 
back,  and  the  man  reached  his  home  safe 
and  sound.  After  arriving  at  his  home,  he 
showed  his  wife  the  hair,  and  told  her  all  that 
had  happened  to  him,  but  she  began  to  jeer 
and  laugh  at  him.  But  he  paid  no  attention 
to  her,  and  went  to  a  town  to  sell  the  hair. 
A  crowd  of  all  sorts  of  people  and  merchants 
collected  round  him;  one  offered  a  sequin, 
another  two,  and  so  on,  higher  and  higher, 
till  they  came  to  a  hundred  gold  sequins. 
Just    then    the   emperor   heard   of    the   hair, 


The  Wonderful  Hair  in 

summoned  the  man  into  his  presence,  and  said 
to  him  that  he  would  give  him  a  thousand 
sequins  for  it,  and  he  sold  it  to  him.  What 
was  the  hair?  The  emperor  split  it  in  two 
from  top  to  bottom,  and  found  registered  in  it 
in  writing  many  remarkable  things,  which 
happened  in  the  olden  time  since  the  begin- 
ning of  the  world.  Thus  the  man  became 
rich  and  lived  on  with  his  wife  and  children. 
And  that  child,  that  came  to  him  in  his  sleep, 
was  an  angel  sent  by  the  Lord  God,  whose 
will  it  was  to  aid  the  poor  man,  and  to  reveal 
secrets  which  had  not  been  revealed  till  then. 


XIV 

THE  DRAGON  AND  THE  PRINCE 

THERE  was  an  emperor  who  had  three 
sons.  One  day  the  eldest  son  went 
out  hunting,  and,  when  he  got  outside  the 
town,  up  sprang  a  hare  out  of  a  bush,  and  he 
after  it,  and  hither  and  thither,  till  the  hare 
fled  into  a  water-mill,  and  the  prince  after  it. 
But  it  was  not  a  hare,  but  a  dragon,  and  it 
waited  for  the  prince  and  devoured  him. 
When  several  days  had  elapsed  and  the  prince 
did  not  return  home,  people  began  to  wonder 
why  it  was  that  he  was  not  to  be  found.  Then 
the  middle  son  went  hunting,  and  as  he  issued 
from  the  town,  a  hare  sprang  out  of  a  bush, 
and  the  prince  after  it,  and  hither  and  thither, 
tiU  the  hare  fled  into  the  water-mill  and  the 
prince  after  it;  but  it  was  not  a  hare,  but  a 
dragon,  which  waited  for  and  devoured  him. 
When  some  days  had  elapsed  and  the  princes 
did  not  return,  either  of  them,  the  whole 
court   was   in   sorrow.     Then   the   third   son 

IIS 


The  Dragon  and  the  Prince  113 

went  hunting,  to  see  whether  he  could  not 
find  his  brothers.  When  he  issued  from  the 
town,  again  up  sprang  a  hare  out  of  a  bush, 
and  the  prince  after  it,  and  hither  and  thither, 
till  the  hare  fled  into  the  water-mill.  But 
the  prince  did  not  choose  to  follow  it,  but  went 
to  find  other  game,  saying  to  himself:  "When 
I  return  I  shall  find  you.'^  After  thus  he  went 
for  a  long  time  up  and  down  the  hill,  but 
found  nothing,  and  then  returned  to  the 
water-mill;  but  when  he  got  there,  there 
was  only  an  old  woman  in  the  mill.  The 
prince  invoked  God  in  addressing  hsr:  "God 
help  you,  old  woman!''  The  old  woman  replied: 
*^God  help  you,  my  son!"  Then  the  prince 
asked  her:  "Where,  old  woman,  is  my  hare?'' 
She  replied:  "My  son,  that  was  not  a  hare, 
but  a  dragon.  It  kills  and  throttles  many 
people."  Hearing  this,  the  prince  was  some- 
what disturbed,  and  said  to  the  old  woman: 
'^Wliat  shall  we  do  now?  Doubtless  my  two 
brothers  also  have  perished  here."  The  old 
woman  answered:  "They  have  indeed;  but 
there's  no  help  for  it.  Go  home,  my  son,  lest 
you  follow  them."  Then  he  said  to  her: 
**Dear  old  woman,  do  you  know  what?  I 
know  that  you  will  be  glad  to  Hberate  your- 


114     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

self  from  that  pest.''  The  old  woman  inter- 
rupted him:  "How  should  I  not?  It  cap- 
tured me,  too,  in  this  way,  but  now  I  have 
no  means  of  escape/'  Then  he  proceeded: 
"Listen  well  to  what  I  am  going  to  say  to 
you.  Ask  it  whither  it  goes  and  where  its 
strength  is;  then  kiss  all  that  place  where 
it  tells  you  its  strength  is,  as  if  from  love,  till 
you  ascertain  it,  and  aftel^ward  tell  me  when 
I  come."  Then  the  prince  went  off  to  the 
palace,  and  the  old  woman  remained  in  the 
water-mill.  When  the  dragon  came  in,  the 
old  woman  began  to  question  it:  "Where  in 
God's  name  have  you  been?  Whither  do 
you  go  so  far?  You  will  never  tell  me  whither 
you  go."  The  dragon  repHed:  "Well,  my 
dear  old  woman,  I  do  go  far."  Then  the  old 
woman  began  to  coax  it:  "And  why  do  you 
go  so  far?  Tell  me  where  your  strength  is. 
If  I  knew  where  your  strength  is,  I  don't 
know  what  I  should  do  for  love;  I  would 
kiss  all  that  place."  Thereupon  the  dragon 
smiled  and  said  to  her :  "  Yonder  is  my  strength, 
in  that  fireplace."  Then  the  old  woman  began 
to  fondle  and  kiss  the  fireplace,  and  the  dragon 
on  seeing  it  burst  into  a  laugh  and  said  to  her: 
"Silly  old  woman,  my  strength  isn't  there; 


The  Dragon  and  the  Prince  ii^ 

my  strength  is  in  that  tree-fungus  in  front  of 
the  house/'    Then  the  old  woman  began  again 
to  fondle  and  kiss  the  tree,  and  the  dragon  again 
laughed,  and  said  to  her:  "Away,  old  woman! 
my  strength  isn't  there."     Then  the  old  woman 
inquired:  "Where  is  it?"     The  dragon  began 
to  give  an  account  in  detail:  "My  strength 
is  a  long  way  off,  and  you  cannot  go  thither. 
Far  in  another  empire  under  the  emperor's 
city  is  a  lake,  in  that  lake  is  a  dragon,  and  in 
that  dragon  a  boar,  and  in  the  boar  a  pigeon, 
and  in  that  is  my  strength."    The  next  morn- 
ing when  the  dragon  went  away  from  the  mill, 
the  prince  came  to  the  old  woman,  and  the 
old  woman  told  him  all  that  she  had  heard 
from  the  dragon.     Then  he  left  his  home,  and 
disguised    himself;  he    put    shepherd's    boots 
on  his  feet,  took  a  shepherd's  staff  in  his  hand, 
and  went  into  the  world.     As  he  went  on  thus 
from  village  to  village,  and  from  town  to  town, 
at  last  he  came  into  another  empire  and  into 
the  imperial  city,  in  a  lake  under  which  the 
dragon   was.     On    going   into    the    to^^^l     he 
began    to   inquire    who   wanted   a    shepherd. 
The  citizens  told  him  that  the  emperor  did. 
Then  he  went  straight  to  the  emperor.     After 
he  announced  himself,  the  emperor  admitted 


ii6     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

him  into  his  presence,  and  asked  him:  "Do 
you  wish  to  keep  sheep?"  He  replied:  "I 
do,  illustrious  crown!''  Then  the  emperor 
engaged  him,  and  began  to  inform  and  instruct 
him:  "There  is  here  a  lake,  and  alongside  of 
the  lake  very  beautiful  pasture,  and  when 
you  call  the  sheep  out,  they  go  thither  at 
once,  and  spread  themselves  round  the  lake; 
but  whatever  shepherd  goes  off  there,  that 
shepherd  returns  back  no  more.  Therefore, 
my  son,  I  tell  you,  don't  let  the  sheep  have 
their  own  way  and  go  where  they  will,  but 
keep  them  where  you  will."  The  prince 
thanked  the  emperor,  got  himself  ready,  and 
called  out  the  sheep,  taking  with  him,  more- 
over, two  hounds  that  could  catch  a  boar  in 
the  open  country,  and  a  falcon  that  could 
capture  any  bird,  and  carrying  also  a  pair 
of  bagpipes.  When  he  called  out  the  sheep 
he  let  them  go  at  once  to  the  lake,  and  when 
the  sheep  arrived  at  the  lake,  they  imme- 
diately spread  round  it,  and  the  prince  placed 
the  falcon  on  a  stump,  and  the  hounds  and 
bagpipes  under  the  stump,  then  tucked  up 
his  hose  and  sleeves,  waded  into  the  lake,  and 
began  to  shout:  "Dragon,  dragon!  come  out 
to  single  combat  with  me  to-day  that  we  may 


The  Dragon  and  the  Prince  117 

measure  ourselves  together,  unless  you're  a 
woman.''*  The  dragon  called  out  in  reply, 
**I  will  do  so  now,  prince  —  now!"  Erelong 
behold  the  dragon!  it  is  large,  it  is  terrible,  it 
is  disgusting!  When  the  dragon  came  out, 
it  seized  him  by  the  waist,  and  they  wrestled 
a  summer  day  till  afternoon.  But  when  the 
heat  of  afternoon  came  on,  the  dragon 
said:  "Let  me  go,  prince,  that  I  may  moisten 
my  parched  head  in  the  lake,  and  toss  you  to 
the  sky."  But  the  prince  replied:  "Come, 
dragon,  don't  talk  nonsense;  if  I  had  the 
emperor's  daughter  to  kiss  me  on  the  forehead, 
I  would  toss  you  still  higher."  Thereupon, 
the  dragon  suddenly  let  him  go,  and  went  off 
into  the  lake.  On  the  approach  of  evening, 
he  washed  and  got  himself  up  nicely,  placed 
the  falcon  on  his  arm,  the  hounds  behind  him, 
and  the  bagpipes  under  his  arm,  then  drove 
the  sheep  and  went  into  the  town  playing  on 
the  bagpipes.  When  he  arrived  at  the  town, 
the  whole  town  assembled  as  to  see  a  wondrous 
sight  because  he  had  come,  whereas  previously 
no  shepherd  had  been  able  to  come  from  the 
lake.    The   next   day   the   prince   got    ready 

*  This  is  intended  as  an  insult.     "Azhdaja,"   a  dragon,  is 
feminine  in  Servian. 


ii8      Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

again,  and  went  with  his  sheep  straight  ta 
the  lake.  But  the  emperor  sent  two  grooms 
after  him  to  go  stealthily  and  see  what  he  did, 
and  they  placed  themselves  on  a  high  hill 
whence  they  could  have  a  good  view.  When 
the  shepherd  arrived,  he  put  the  hounds  and 
bagpipes  imder  the  stump  and  the  falcon 
upon  it,  then  tucked  up  his  hose  and  sleeves, 
waded  into  the  lake  and  shouted:  "Dragon, 
dragon!  come  out  to  single  combat  with  me, 
that  we  may  measure  ourselves  once  more 
together,  unless  you  are  a  woman!"  The 
dragon  replied :  "  I  will  do  so,  prince,  now,  now! " 
Erelong,  behold  the  dragon!  it  was  large,  it 
was  terrible,  it  was  disgusting!  And  it  seized 
him  by  the  waist  and  wrestled  with  him  a 
summer's  day  till  afternoon.  But  when  the 
afternoon  heat  came  on,  the  dragon  said: 
"Let  me  go,  prince,  that  I  may  moisten  my 
parched  head  in  the  lake,  and  may  toss  you 
to  the  sky."  The  prince  replied:  "Come, 
dragon,  don't  talk  nonsense;  if  I  had  the 
emperor's  daughter  to  kiss  me  on  the  fore- 
head, I  would  toss  you  still  higher."  There- 
upon the  dragon  suddenly  left  hold  of  him, 
and  went  off  into  the  lake.  When  night 
approached   the  prince   drove   the   sheep   as 


The  Dragon  and  the  Prince  119 

before,  and  went  home  playing  the  bagpipes 
When  he  arrived  at  the  town,  the  whole  town 
was  astir  and  began  to  wonder  because  the 
shepherd  came  home  every  evening,  which 
no  one  had  been  able  to  do  before.  Those 
two  grooms  had  already  arrived  at  the  palace 
before  the  prince,  and  related  to  the  emperor 
in  order  everytliing  that  they  had  heard  and 
seen.  Now  when  the  emperor  saw  that  the 
shepherd  returned  home,  he  immediately  sum- 
moned  his  daughter  into  his  presence  and  told 
her  all,  what  it  was  and  how  it  was.  "But,*" 
said  he,  "to-morrow  you  must  go  with  the 
shepherd  to  the  lake  and  kiss  him  on  the 
forehead."  When  she  heard  this  she  burst 
into  tears  and  began  to  entreat  her  father. 
"You  have  no  one  but  me,  and  I  am  your 
only  daughter,  and  you  don't  care  about  me 
if  I  perish."  Then  the  emperor  began  to 
persuade  and  encourage  her:  "Don't  fear, 
my  daughter;  you  see  we  have  had  so  many 
changes  of  shepherds,  and  of  all  that  went 
out  to  the  lake  not  one  has  returned;  but 
he  had  been  contending  with  the  dragon  for 
two  whole  days  and  it  has  done  him  no  hurt. 
I  assure  you,  in  God's  name,  that  he  is  able 
to  overcome  the  dragon,  only  go  to-morrow 


I20     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

with  him  to  see  whether  he  will  free  us  from 
this  mischief  which  has  destroyed  so  many 
people." 

When,  on  the  morrow,  the  day  dawned 
and  the  sun  came  forth,  up  rose  the  shep- 
herd, up  rose  the  maiden  too,  to  begin  to 
prepare  for  going  to  the  lake.  The  shep- 
herd was  cheerful,  more  cheerful  than  ever, 
but  the  emperor's  daughter  was  sad  and 
shed  tears.  The  shepherd  comforted  her: 
'^Lady  sister,  I  pray  you,  do  not  weep,  but 
do  what  I  tell  you.  When  it  is  time,  run  up 
and  kiss  me,  and  fear  not."  As  he  went 
and  drove  the  sheep,  the  shepherd  was  thor- 
oughly cheery,  and  played  a  merry  tune  on 
his  bagpipes;  but  the  damsel  did  nothing  but 
weep  as  she  went  beside  him,  and  he  several 
times  left  oflF  playing  and  turned  toward  her: 
"Weep  not,  golden  one;  fear  nought."  When 
they  arrived  at  the  lake,  the  sheep  immediately 
spread  round  it,  and  the  prince  placed  the 
falcon  on  the  stump,  and  the  hounds  and 
bagpipes  under  it,  then  tucked  up  his  hose 
and  sleeves,  waded  into  the  water,  and  shouted: 
"Dragon!  dragon!  Come  out  to  single  com- 
bat with  me;  let  us  measure  ourselves  once 
more,  unless  you're  a  woman!''    The  dragon 


The  Dragon  and  the  Prince  121 

replied:  "I  will,  prince;  now,  now!"  Ere- 
long, there  was  the  dragon!  it  was  huge,  it 
was  terrible,  it  was  disgusting!  Wlien  it 
came  out,  they  seized  each  other  by  the  middle, 
and  wrestled  a  summer's  day  till  afternoon. 
But  when  the  afternoon  heat  came  on,  the 
dragon  said:  "Let  me  go,  prince,  that  I  may 
moisten  my  parched  head  in  the  lake,  and  toss 
you  to  the  skies."  The  prince  replied :  "  Come, 
dragon,  don't  talk  nonsense;  if  I  had  the 
emperor's  daughter  to  kiss  me  on  the  fore- 
head, I  would  toss  you  much  higher."  Wlien 
he  said  this,  the  emperor's  daughter  ran 
up  and  kissed  him  on  the  face,  on  the  eye,  and 
on  the  forehead.  Then  he  swung  the  dragon, 
and  tossed  it  high  into  the  air,  and  when  it 
fell  to  the  ground  it  burst  into  pieces.  But 
as  it  burst  into  pieces,  out  of  it  sprang  a  wild 
boar,  and  started  to  run  away.  But  the  prince 
shouted  to  his  shepherd  dogs:  "Hold  it! 
don't  let  it  go!"  and  the  dogs  sprang  up  and 
after  it,  caught  it,  and  soon  tore  it  to  pieces. 
But  out  of  the  boar  flew  a  pigeon,  and  the 
prince  loosed  the  falcon,  and  the  falcon  caught 
the  pigeon  and  brought  it  into  the  prince's 
hands.  The  prince  said  to  it:  "Tell  me  now, 
where  are  my  brothers?"    The  pigeon  replied: 


122     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

"I  will;  only  do  me  no  harm.  Immediately 
behind  your  father's  town  is  a  water-mill,  and 
in  the  water-mill  are  three  wands  that  have 
sprouted  up.  Cut  these  three  wands  up 
from  below,  and  strike  with  them  upon  their 
root;  an  iron  door  will  immediately  open 
into  a  large  vault.  In  that  vault  are  many 
people,  old  and  young,  rich  and  poor,  small 
and  great,  wives  and  maidens,  so  that  you 
could  settle  a  populous  empire;  there,  too, 
are  your  brothers. '^  When  the  pigeon  had 
told  him  all  this,  the  prince  immediately 
wrung  its  neck. 

The  emperor  had  gone  out  in  person,  and 
posted  himself  on  the  hill  from  which  the 
grooms  had  viewed  the  shepherd,  and  he,  too^ 
was  a  spectator  of  all  that  had  taken  place. 
After  the  shepherd  had  thus  obtained  the 
dragon's  head,  twihght  began  to  approach. 
He  washed  himself  nicely,  took  the  falcon 
on  his  shoulder,  the  hounds  behind  him,  and 
the  bagpipes  under  his  arm,  played  as  he  went, 
drove  the  sheep,  and  proceeded  to  the  em- 
peror's palace,  with  the  damsel  at  his  side 
still  in  terror.  When  they  came  to  the  town, 
all  the  town  assembled  as  to  see  a  wonder. 
The  emperor,  who  had  seen  all  his  heroism 


The  Dragon  and  the  Prince  123 

from  the  liill,  called  him  into  his  presence, 
and  gave  him  his  daughter,  went  imme- 
diately to  church,  had  them  married,  and 
held  a  wedding  festival  for  a  week.  After 
this  the  prince  told  him  who  and  whence  he 
was,  and  the  emperor  and  the  whole  town 
rejoiced  still  more.  Then,  as  the  prince  was 
urgent  to  go  to  his  own  home,  the  emperor 
gave  him  a  large  escort,  and  equipped  him 
for  the  journey.  When  they  were  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  the  water-mill,  the  prince  halted 
his  attendants,  went  inside,  cut  up  the  three 
wands,  and  struck  the  root  with  them,  and  the 
iron  door  opened  at  once.  In  the  vault  was  a 
vast  multitude  of  people.  The  prince  ordered 
them  to  come  out  one  by  one,  and  go  whither 
each  would,  and  stood  himself  at  the  door. 
They  came  out  thus  one  after  another,  and 
lo!  there  were  his  brothers  also,  whom  he 
embraced  and  kissed.  When  the  whole  mul- 
titude had  come  out,  they  thanked  him  for 
releasing  and  delivering  them,  and  went  each 
to  his  own  home.  But  he  went  to  his  father's 
house  with  his  brothers  and  bride,  and  there 
lived  and  reigned  to  the  end  of  his  days. 


XV 

THE  GOOD  CHILDREN 

THE  Lord  was  angered  at  mankind,  and 
for  three  years  there  was  a  great  famine 
over  all  the  world;  nowhere  in  the  world  was 
-^ven  a  grain  of  corn  produced,  and  what 
people  sowed  failed  to  come  up  from  a  drought 
so  great  that  for  three  years  there  was  not 
a  drop  of  rain  or  dew.  For  one  year  more 
people  managed  to  hve  somehow  or  other, 
thrashing  up  what  old  corn  there  was;  the 
rich  made  money,  for  corn  rose  very  high. 
Autumn  came.  Where  anybody  had  or  pur- 
chased old  seed,  they  sowed  it;  and  entreated 
the  Lord,  hoped  in  the  love  of  God,  if  Cjod 
would  give  fertihty,  '4f  God  would  forgive 
our  sins.''  But  it  was  not  so.  They  did  not 
obtain  the  love  of  God.  When  they  cast  the 
seed  into  the  holy  earth,  that  was  the  last 
they  saw  of  it;  if  it  germinated  somewhat, 
if  it  sent  up  shoots,  it  withered  away  close  to 
the    ground.     Woe!    and    abundance    of    it! 

124 


The  Good  Children  12  c 

God's  world  went  on,  sorrowed  and  wept, 
for  now  it  was  manifest  that  death  by  hunger 
was  approaching.  They  somehow  got  miser- 
ably through  the  winter.  Spring  came.  Where 
anybody  had  still  any  grain,  they  sowed  it. 
What  would  come  to  pass?  No  blessing  was 
poured  forth,  for  the  thought  began  with 
wind.  Moreover,  there  was  but  little  snow 
in  the  winter,  and  everything  dried  up  so  that 
the  black  earth  remained  as  it  was.  It  now 
came  to  this  —  all  the  world  began  to  perish! 
The  people  died;  the  cattle  perished;  as  misery 
carried  them,  so  did  the  people  proceed. 

There  was  at  that  time  a  powerful  emperor 
in  a  certain  empire:  as  the  young  ordinarily 
cleave  to  the  young,  so  would  he  associate 
only  with  young  men.  Whether  in  council 
or  in  office  or  in  the  army,  there  were  none 
but  young  men;  no  old  men  had  access  to 
anything  anywhere.  Well,  as  young  men,  un- 
ripe in  understanding,  were  the  councillors,  so 
was  their  counsel  also  unripe.  One  year  passed; 
a  second  passed;  then,  in  the  third  year,  they  saw 
that  misery  was  already  on  every  side,  that  it 
was  already  coming  to  this,  that  all  the  world 
would  perish.  The  young  emperor  assembled 
his  young  council,  and  they  began  to  advise 


126     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

after  their  fashion;  they  advised,  they  ad- 
vised, and  ah!  the  resolutions  they  came  to 
were  such  that  it  is  a  sin  even  to  give  an  account 
of  their  resolutions!  Well,  the  emperor  made 
proclamation  after  their  advice,  that  all  old 
people  were  to  be  drowned,  in  order  that, 
said  he,  bread  might  not  be  wasted  in  vain, 
but  there  might  be  a  supply  of  bread  for  the 
young;  and  that  no  one  should  venture,  on 
pain  of  death,  to  maintain  or  harbour  any 
old  man.  Well,  heralds  went  about  through- 
out the  whole  country,  and  promulgated  the 
emperor's  command  everywhere  —  yea,  brig- 
ands seized  old  people  where  they  chose,  and 
drowned  them  without  mercy. 

There  were  then  in  a  certain  place  three 
own  brothers,  who  had  an  aged  father.  When 
they  heard  of  this  edict,  they  told  their  father; 
and  their  father  said:  ^'My  sons,  such  is  the 
will  of  God  and  the  will  of  the  emperor;  take 
me,  let  me  perish  at  once,  only  that  you,  my 
children,  may  live  on.  I  am  already  with 
one  foot  in  the  grave."  "No,  our  own  daddy! 
we  will  die,  but  we  will  not  give  you  up," 
cried  the  good  sons  with  one  voice,  and  fell 
upon  his  neck;  "we  will  keep  you;  we  will  take 
from  our  own  mouths,  and  will  nourish  you." 


The  Good  Children  127 

The  three  brothers  took  their  aged  father, 
conducted  him  into  their  cottage,  dug  under 
the  raised  portion  of  the  floor,  made  up  a  bed 
with  sheets  and  frieze-coats,  for  straw  was 
scarce,  and  placed  the  old  man  there,  brought 
him  a  loaf  of  bread  as  black  as  the  holy  earth, 
and  covered  him  over  with  the  floor.  There 
the  old  man  abode  for  two  or  three  months, 
and  his  sons  brought  him  clandestinely  all 
they  had.  The  summer  passed  without  har- 
vest, without  mowing.  September  passed  too. 
Autumn  passed  without  joy.  Winter  passed 
too.  Now  came  spring;  the  sun  became  warm. 
It  was  now  time  to  sow,  but  there  was  no  seed. 
The  world  was  large,  but  there  was  no  seed- 
^orn.  When  one  kind  was  used  up,  the  people 
sowed  others,  hoping  that  there  would  be  a 
crop;  but  when  they  cast  it  into  the  holy 
earth,  it  rotted  there.  It  seemed  as  if  the 
end  of  the  world  were  come. 

Then  the  three  sons  went  to  their  father, 
and  asked  him:  "Daddy,  what  shall  we  do? 
It's  time  to  sow.  God  is  now  sending  showers 
of  rain;  the  earth  is  warmed  and  is  crumbHng 
like  grits;  but  of  seed  there  is  not  a  blessed 
grain."  "Take,  my  sons,  and  strip  the  old 
roof  off  the  house,  and  thresh  the  bundles 


128     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

and  sow  the  chaff/'  The  lads  stripped  the 
house  and  barn  (anyhow,  there  was  nothing 
in  it),  and  threshed  away  till  the  sweat  ran 
from  their  brows,  so  that  they  crushed  the 
bundles  as  small  as  poppy-seeds.  When  they 
sowed,  God  gave  a  blessing;  so  in  a  week's 
time  it  became  green  like  rue;  in  a  month's  time, 
in  two  months'  time,  there  w^as  corn,  ever  so 
much  —  ever  so  much,  and  all  manner  of 
seed  was  found  there:  there  was  rye,  there 
was  wheat  and  barley;  yea,  maybe,  there  was 
also  a  plant  or  tw^o  of  buckwheat  and  millet. 
Wherever  you  went  throughout  the  world 
there  was  no  corn  to  be  seen;  all  the  plain 
was  overgrown  with  grasses,  steppe-grasses, 
and  thistles,  but  with  them  was  corn  like  a 
forest.  How  people  wondered  and  were  as- 
tounded! The  fame  thereof  went  over  the 
whole  world,  and  the  news  reached  the  emperor 
himself,  that  in  such  and  such  a  place  there 
were  three  own  brothers,  and  with  them  corn 
had  sprung  up  for  all  the  world,  and  so  beau- 
tiful, never  was  the  like  beheld!  The  emperor 
ordered  the  three  brothers  to  appear  in  the 
imperial  presence. 

The  brothers  heard  of  it,  and  smacked  the 
tops  of  their  heads  with  their  hands.     "Now 


The  Good  Children  129 

it  will  be  amen  with  us!"  They  went  again 
to  their  father.  "Daddy!  they  tell  us  to  ap- 
pear before  the  emperor.  Advise  us,  daddy, 
what  to  do!"  "Go,  my  sons  —  what  will 
be,  will  be;  and  tell  the  pure  truth  before  the 
emperor."  The  brothers  started  off  and  went 
ito  the  emperor.  The  emperor  inquired  men- 
acingly: "\Vlw,  villains,  did  ye  hoard  up  corn, 
when  there  was  such  a  famine  that  so  many 
people  died  of  hunger?  Tell  the  truth;  if 
not  I  shall  order  you  to  be  tortured  and  racked 
even  unto  death."  The  brothers  related  all 
as  it  had  been,  from  the  beginning  to  the  end. 
"Now,  most  gracious  emperor,  give  us  over 
to  any  torture  whatever,  or  let  thy  kindness 
have  compassion  on  us!"  The  em^peror's 
brow  became  smooth,  his  eyes  became  serene. 
He  then  ordered  the  old  father  to  be  brought 
before  him  at  once,  and  made  him  sit  beside 
him  close  to  his  throne,  and  hearkened  to  his 
counsel  till  death,  and  his  sons  he  rewarded 
handsomely.  He  ordered  the  corn  to  be  col- 
lected ear  by  ear,  and  to  be  rubbed  out  in 
men's  hands;  and  sent  it  about  for  seed-corn 
in  all  empires,  and  from  '^t  was  produced  holy 
com  for  all  the  world. 


XVI 

THE   DUN   HORSE* 


MANY  years  ago  there  lived  in  the  Pawnee 
tribe  an  old  woman  and  her  grandson 
a  boy  about  sixteen  years  old.  These  people 
had  no  relations  and  were  very  poor.  The}^ 
were  so  poor  that  they  were  despised  by  the 
rest  of  the  tribe.  They  had  nothing  of  their 
own;  and  always,  after  the  village  started 
to  move  the  camp  from  one  place  to  another, 
these  two  would  stay  behind  the  rest,  to  look 
over  the  old  camp  and  pick  up  anything  that 
the  other  Indians  had  thrown  away  as  worn 
out  or  useless.  In  this  way  they  would  some- 
times get  pieces  of  robes,  wornout  moccasins 
with  holes  in  them,  and  bits  of  meat. 

Now,  it  happened  one  day,  after  the  tribe 
had  moved  away  from  the  camp,  that  this 


*  From  "Pawnee  Hero  Stories  and  Folk  Tales."  Copyright, 
1890,  by  George  Bird  Grinnell;  published  by  Charles  Scribner's 
Sons. 

130 


The  Dun  Horse  131 

old  woman  and  her  boy  were  following  along 
the  trail  behind  the  rest,  when  they  came  to 
a  miserable  old  wornout  dun  horse,  which 
they  supposed  had  been  abandoned  by  some 
Indians.  He  was  thin  and  exhausted,  was 
blind  of  one  eye,  had  a  bad  sore  back,  and  one 
of  his  forelegs  was  very  much  swollen.  In 
fact,  he  was  so  worthless  that  none  of  the 
Pawnees  had  been  willing  to  take  the  trouble 
to  try  to  drive  him  along  with  them.  But 
when  the  old  woman  and  her  boy  came  along, 
the  boy  said,  "Come  now,  we  will  take  this 
old  horse,  for  we  can  make  him  carry  our 
pack."  So  the  old  woman  put  her  pack  on 
the  horse,  and  drove  him  along,  but  he  limped 
and  could  only  go  very  slowly. 


II 


The  tribe  moved  up  on  the  North  Platte, 
until  they  came  to  Court  House  Rock.  The 
two  poor  Indians  followed  them,  and  camped 
with  the  others.  One  day  while  they  were 
here,  the  young  men  who  had  been  sent  out 
to  look  for  buffalo,  came  hurrying  into  camp  and 
told  the  chiefs  that  a  large  herd  of  buffalo  were 
near,  and  that  among  them  was  a  spotted  calf. 


132      Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

The  Head  Chief  of  the  Pawnees  had  a  very 
beautiful  daughter,  and  when  he  heard  about 
the  spotted  calf  he  ordered  his  old  crier  to 
go  about  through  the  village  and  call  out 
that  the  man  who  killed  the  spotted  calf  should 
have  his  daughter  for  his  wife.  For  a  spotted 
robe  is  ti-war^-uks-ti  —  big  medicine. 

The  buffalo  were  feeding  about  four  miles 
from  the  village,  and  the  chiefs  decided  that 
the  charge  should  be  made  from  there.  In 
this  way,  the  man  who  had  the  fastest  horse 
would  be  the  most  likely  to  kill  the  calf  Then 
all  the  warriors  and  the  young  men  picked 
out  their  best  and  fastest  horses,  and  made 
ready  to  start.  Among  those  who  prepared 
for  the  charge  Vv^as  the  poor  boy  on  the  old  dun 
horse.  But  when  they  saw  him,  all  the  rich 
young  braves  on  their  fast  horses  pointed  at 
him  and  said,  '^Oh,  see;  there  is  the  horse 
that  is  going  to  catch  the  spotted  calf";  and 
they  laughed  at  him,  so  that  the  poor  boy  was 
ashamed,  and  rode  off  to  one  side  of  the  crowd, 
where  he  could  not  hear  their  jokes  and 
laughter. 

When  he  had  ridden  off  some  little  way 
the  horse  stopped  and  turned  his  head  round, 
and  spoke  to  the  boy.     He  said,  "Take  me 


The  Dim  Horse  133 

down  the  creek,  and  plaster  me  all  over  with 
mud.  Cover  my  head  and  neck  and  body 
and  legs."  When  the  boy  heard  the  horse 
speak,  he  was  afraid;  but  he  did  as  he  v/as 
told.  Then  the  horse  said,  "Now  mount, 
but  do  not  ride  back  to  the  warriors,  who 
laugh  at  you  because  you  have  such  a  poor 
horse.  Stay  right  here  until  the  word  is 
given  to  charge.''     So  the  boy  stayed  there. 

And  presently  all  the  fine  horses  were  drawn 
up  in  line  and  pranced  about,  and  were  so 
eager  to  go  that  their  riders  could  hardly 
hold  them  in;  and  at  last  the  old  crier  gave 
the  word,  "Loo-ahl "  —  Go !  Then  the  Pawnees 
all  leaned  forward  on  their  horses  and  yelled, 
and  away  they  went.  Suddenly,  away  off 
to  the  right,  was  seen  the  old  dun  horse.  He 
did  not  seem  to  nm.  He  seemed  to  sail 
along  like  a  bird.  He  passed  all  the  fastest 
horses,  and  in  a  moment  he  was  among  the 
buffalo.  First  he  picked  out  the  spotted  calf, 
and  charging  up  alongside  of  it,  U-ra-rish! 
straight  flew  the  arrow.  The  calf  fell.  The 
boy  drew  another  arrow,  and  killed  a  fat  cow 
that  was  running  by.  Then  he  dismounted 
and  began  to  skin  the  calf,  before  any  of  the 
other  warriors  had  come  up.     But  when  the 


^34     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

rider  got  off  the  old  dun  horse,  how  changed 
ire  was!  He  pranced  about  and  would  hardly 
stand  still  near  the  dead  buffalo.  His  back 
was  all  right  again;  his  legs  were  well  and 
fine;  and  both  his  eyes  were  clear  and  bright. 

The  boy  skinned  the  calf  and  the  cow  that 
he  had  killed,  and  then  he  packed  all  the  meat 
on  the  horse,  and  put  the  spotted  robe  on  top 
of  the  load,  and  started  back  to  the  camp  on 
foot,  leading  the  dun  horse.  But  even  with  this 
heavy  load  the  horse  pranced  all  the  time, 
and  was  scared  at  everything  he  saw.  On 
the  way  to  camp,  one  of  the  rich  young  chiefs 
of  the  tribe  rode  up  by  the  boy  and  offered 
him  twelve  good  horses  for  the  spotted  robe, 
so  that  he  could  marry  the  Head  Chief's 
beautiful  daughter;  but  the  boy  laughed  at 
him  and  would  not  sell  the  robe. 

Now,  while  the  boy  walked  to  the  camp 
leading  the  dun  horse,  most  of  the  warriors 
rode  back,  and  one  of  those  that  came  first 
to  the  village  went  to  the  old  woman  and 
said  to  her,  ''Your  grandson  has  killed  the 
spotted  calf.''  And  the  old  woman  said, 
"Why  do  you  come  to  tell  me  this?  You 
ought  to  be  ashamed  to  make  fun  of  my  boy, 
because  he  is  poor."     The  warrior  said,  "  What 


The  Dun  Horse  135 

I  have  told  you  is  true,"  and  then  he  rode 
away.  After  a  little  while  another  brave 
rode  up  to  the  old  woman,  and  said  to  her, 
'^Your  grandson  has  killed  the  spotted  calf." 
Then  the  old  woman  began  to  cry,  she  felt 
so  badly  because  every  one  made  fun  of  her 
boy,  because  he  was  poor. 

Pretty  soon  the  boy  came  along,  leading 
the  horse  up  to  the  lodge  where  he  and  his 
grandmother  lived.  It  was  a  Httle  lodge,  just 
big  enough  for  twO;,  and  was  made  of  old  pieces 
of  skin  that  the  old  woman  had  picked  up, 
and  was  tied  together  with  strings  of  raw- 
hide and  sinew.  It  was  the  meanest  and  worst 
lodge  in  the  village.  When  the  old  woman 
saw  her  boy  leading  the  dun  horse  with  the 
load  of  meat  and  the  robes  on  it,  she  was  very 
surprised.  The  boy  said  to  her,  "Here,  I 
have  brought  you  plenty  of  meat  to  eat,  and 
here  is  a  robe,  that  you  may  have  for  your- 
self. Take  the  meat  off  the  horse."  Then 
the  old  woman  laughed,  for  her  heart  was  glad. 
But  when  she  went  to  take  the  meat  from  the 
horse's  back,  he  snorted  and  jumped  about, 
and  acted  like  a  wild  horse.  The  old  woman 
looked  at  him  in  wonder,  and  could  hardly 
believe  that  it  was  the  same  horse.     So  the 


136     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

boy  had  to  take  off  the  meat,  for  the  horse 
would  not  let  the  old  woman  come  near  him. 


Ill 


That  night  the  horse  spoke  again  to  the  boy 
and  said,  ^^Wa-ti-hes  Chah^-ra-rat  wa-ta.  To- 
morrow the  Sioux  are  coming  —  a  large  war 
party.  They  will  attack  the  village,  and  you 
will  have  a  great  battle.  Now,  when  the 
Sioux  are  all  drawn  up  in  line  of  battle,  and 
are  all  ready  to  fight,  you  jump  on  to  me,  and 
ride  as  hard  as  you  can,  right  into  the  middle 
of  the  Sioux,  and  up  to  their  Head  Chief,  their 
greatest  warrior,  and  count  coup  on  him,  and 
kill  him,  and  then  ride  back.  Do  this  four 
times,  and  count  coup  on  four  of  the  bravest 
Sioux,  and  kill  them,  but  don't  go  again.  If 
you  go  the  fifth  time,  maybe  you  wiU  be  killed, 
or  else  you  will  lose  me.  La-kit'-ta-chix  — 
remember.''     So  the  boy  promised. 

The  next  day  it  happened  as  the  horse  had 
said,  and  the  Sioux  came  down  and  formed 
in  line  of  battle.  Then  the  boy  took  his  bow 
and  arrows,  and  jumped  on  the  dun  horse, 
and  charged  into  the  midst  of  them.  And 
when   the   Sioux   saw   that  he  was  going   to 


The  Dun  Horse  137 

strike  their  Head  Chief,  they  all  shot  their 
arrows  at  him,  and  the  arrows  flew  so  thickly 
across  each  other  that  they  darkened  the  sky, 
but  none  of  them  hit  the  boy.  And  he  counted 
coup  on  the  Chief,  and  killed  him,  and  then 
rode  back.  After  that  he  charged  again 
among  the  Sioux,  where  they  were  gathered 
thickest,  and  counted  coup  on  their  bravest 
warrior,  and  killed  him.  And  then  twice 
rnore,  until  he  had  .gone  four  times  as  the 
horse   had   told   him. 

But  the  Sioux  and  the  Pawnees  kept  on 
fighting,  and  the  boy  stood  around  and  watched 
the  battle.  And  at  last  he  said  to  himself, 
"I  have  been  four  times  and  have  killed  four 
Sioux,  and  I  am  all  right,  I  am  not  hurt  any- 
where; why  may  I  not  go  again?''  So  he 
jumped  on  the  dun  horse,  and  charged  again. 
But  when  he  got  among  the  Sioux,  one  Sioux 
warrior  drew  an  arrow  and  shot.  The  arrow 
struck  the  dun  horse  behind  the  forelegs  and 
pierced  him  through.  And  the  horse  fell 
down  dead.  But  the  boy  jumped  off,  and 
fought  his  way  through  the  Sioux,  and  ran 
away  as  fast  as  he  could  to  the  Pawnees.  Now, 
as  soon  as  the  horse  was  killed,  the  Sioux  said 
to  each  other:  "This  horse  was  like  a  man. 


138     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

He  was  brave.  He  was  not  like  a  horse." 
And  they  took  their  knives  and  hatchets,  and 
hacked  the  dun  horse  and  gashed  his  flesh, 
and  cut  him  into  small  pieces. 

The  Pawnees  and  Sioux  fought  all  day  long, 
but  toward  night  the  Sioux  broke  and  fled. 


IV 


The  boy  felt  very  badly  that  he  had  lost 
his  horse;  and,  after  the  fight  was  over,  he 
went  out  from  the  village  to  where  it  had 
taken  place,  to  mourn  for  his  horse.  He  went 
to  the  spot  where  the  horse  lay,  and  gathered 
up  all  the  pieces  of  flesh,  which  the  Sioux 
had  cut  off,  and  the  legs  and  the  hoofs,  and 
put  them  all  together  in  a  pile.  Then  he  went 
off  to  the  top  of  a  hill  near  by,  and  sat  down 
and  drew  his  robe  over  his  head,  and  began 
to  mourn  for  his  horse. 

As  he  sat  there,  he  heard  a  great  wind-storm 
coming  up,  and  it  passed  over  him  with  a 
loud  rushing  sound,  and  after  the  wind  came 
a  rain.  The  boy  looked  down  from  where  he 
sat  to  the  pile  of  flesh  and  bones,  which  was 
all  that  was  left  of  his  horse,  and  he  could 
just  see  it  through  the  rain.     And  the  rain 


The  Dun  Horse  139 

passed  by,  and  his  heart  was  very  heavy,  and 
he  kept  on  mourning. 

And  pretty  soon  came  another  rushing 
wind,  and  after  it  a  rain;  and  as  he  looked 
through  the  driving  rain  toward  the  spot  where 
the  pieces  lay,  he  thought  that  they  seemed 
to  come  together  and  take  shape,  and  that 
the  pile  looked  like  a  horse  lying  down,  but 
he  could  not  see  well  for  the  thick  rain. 

After  this  came  a  third  storm  like  the 
others;  and  now  when  he  looked  toward  the 
horse  he  thought  he  saw  its  tail  move  from 
side  to  side  two  or  three  times,  and  that  it 
lifted  its  head  from  the  ground.  The  boy 
was  afraid,  and  wanted  to  run  away,  but  he 
stayed. 

And  as  he  waited,  there  came  another  storm. 
And  while  the  rain  fell,  looking  through  the 
rain,  the  boy  saw  the  horse  raise  himself  up 
on  his  forelegs  and  look  about.  Then  the 
dun  horse  stood  up. 


The  boy  left  the  place  where  he  had  been 
sitting  on  the  hilltop,  and  went  down  to  him. 
Wlien  the  boy  had  come  near  to  him,  the  horse 


I40     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

spoke  and  said:  *^You  have  seen  how  it  has 
been  this  day;  and  from  this  you  may  know 
how  it  will  be  after  this.  But  Ti-ra^-wa  has 
been  good,  and  has  let  me  come  back  to  you. 
After  this,  do  what  I  tell  you;  not  any  more, 
not  any  less.'^  Then  the  horse  said:  "Now 
lead  me  off,  far  away  from  the  camp,  behind 
that  big  hill,  and  leave  me  there  to-night,  and 
in  the  morning  come  for  me;''  and  the  boy 
did  as  he  was  told. 

And  when  he  went  for  the  horse  in  the  morn- 
ing, he  found  with  him  a  beautiful  white 
gelding,  much  more  handsome  than  any  horse^ 
in  the  tribe.  That  night  the  dun  horse  told 
the  boy  to  take  him  again  to  the  place  behind 
the  big  hill,  and  to  come  for  him  the  next 
morning;  and  when  the  boy  went  for  him 
again,  he  found  with  him  a  beautiful  black 
gelding.  And  so  for  ten  nights,  he  left  the 
horse  among  the  hills,  and  each  morning  he 
found  a  different  coloured  horse,  a  bay,  a 
roan,  a  gray,  a  blue,  a  spotted  horse,  and  all 
of  them  finer  than  any  horses  that  the  Pawnees 
had  ever  had  in  their  tribe  before. 

Now  the  boy  v/as  rich,  and  he  married  the 
beautiful  daughter  of  the  Head  Chief,  and 
when  he  became  older  he  was  made    Head 


The  Dim  Horse  141 

Chief  himself.  He  had  many  children  by  his 
beautiful  wife,  and  one  day  when  his  oldest 
boy  died,  he  wrapped  him  in  the  spotted  calf 
robe  and  buried  him  in  it.  He  always  took 
good  care  of  his  old  grandmother,  and  kept 
her  in  his  own  lodge  until  she  died.  The  dun 
horse  was  never  ridden  except  at  feasts,  and 
when  they  were  going  to  have  a  doctors'  dance, 
but  he  was  always  led  about  with  the  Chief 
wherever  he  went.  The  horse  lived  in  the 
village  for  many  years,  until  he  became  very 
old.    And  at  last  he  died. 


xvn 

THE  GREEDY  YOUNGSTER 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  were  five  women 
who  were  in  a  field  reaping  corn.  None 
of  them  had  any  children,  but  they  were  ail 
wishing  for  a  child.  All  at  once  they  found 
a  big  goose  egg,  almost  as  big  as  a  man's  head. 

"I  saw  it  first/'  said  one.  '^I  saw  it  just 
as  soon  as  you  did,"  shouted  another.  ''But 
I'll  have  it,"  screamed  the  third,  "I  saw  it 
first  of  aU." 

Thus  they  kept  on  quarrelling  and  fighting 
about  the  egg,  and  they  were  very  near  tear- 
ing each  other's  hair.  But  at  last  they  agreed 
that  it  should  belong  to  them  all,  and  that 
they  should  sit  on  it  as  the  geese  do  and  hatch 
a  gosling.  The  first  woman  sat  on  it  for 
eight  days,  taking  it  very  comfortably  and 
doing  nothing  at  all,  while  the  others  had  to 
work  hard  both  for  their  own  and  her  living. 
One  of  the  women  began  to  make  some  insin- 
uations to  her  about  this. 

142 


The  Greedy  Youngster  143 

"Well,  I  Stippose  you  didn't  come  out  of 
the  tgg  either  before  you  could  chirp/'  said 
the  woman  who  was  on  the  ^gg.  ''But  I 
think  there  is  something  in  this  cgg^  for  I 
fancy  I  can  hear  some  one  inside  grumbling 
every  other  moment:  'Herring  and  soup! 
Porridge  and  milk!'  You  can  come  and  sit 
for  eight  days  now,  and  then  we  will  sit  and 
work  in  turn,  all  of  us." 

So  when  the  fifth  in  turn  had  sat  for  eight 
days,  she  heard  plainly  some  one  inside  the 
^gg  screeching  for  "  Herring  and  soup !  Porridge 
and  milk!"  And  so  she  made  a  hole  in  it; 
but  instead  of  a  gosling  out  came  a  baby,  but 
it  was  awfully  ugly,  and  had  a  big  head  and 
a  tiny  little  body.  The  first  thing  it  screamed 
out  for,  as  soon  as  it  put  its  head  outside  the 
egg,  was  "Herring  and  soup!  Porridge  and 
milk!"  And  so  they  called  it  "the  greedy 
youngster." 

Ugly  as  he  was,  they  were  fond  of  him  at 
first;  but  before  long  he  became  so  greedy 
that  he  ate  up  all  the  meat  they  had.  When 
they  boiled  a  dish  of  soup  or  a  pot  of  porridge 
which  they  thought  would  be  sufficient  for 
all  six,  he  finished  it  all  by  himself.  So  they 
would  not  have  him  any  longer. 


144      Polk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

"I  have  not  had  a  decent  meal  since  this 
changeKng  crept  out  of  the  eggshell,"  said 
one  of  them,  and  when  the  youngster  heard 
that  they  were  all  of  the  same  opinion,  he  said 
he  was  quite  willing  to  go  his  way;  '4f  they 
did  not  want  him,  he  was  sure  he  did  not  want 
them,"  and  with  that  he  left  the  place. 

After  a  long  time  he  came  to  a  farm  where 
the  fields  were  full  of  stones,  and  he  went  in 
and  asked  for  a  situation.  They  wanted  a 
labourer  on  the  farm,  and  the  farmer  put 
him  to  pick  up  stones  from  the  field.  Yes, 
the  youngster  went  to  work  and  picked  up 
the  stones,  some  of  which  were  so  big  that 
they  would  make  many  cart-loads;  but 
whether  they  were  big  or  small,  he  put  them 
all  into  his  pocket.  It  did  not  take  him  long 
to  finish  that  job,  so  he  wanted  to  know  what 
he  should  do  next. 

"You  will  have  to  get  all  the  stones  out  of 
the  field,"  said  the  farmer.  ''I  suppose  you 
can't  be  ready  before  you  have  commenced?" 

But  the  youngster  emptied  his  pockets  and 
threw  all  the  stones  in  a  heap.  Then  the 
farmer  saw  that  he  had  finished  the  work,  and 
he  thought  he  ought  to  look  well  after  one 
who  was  so  strong.     He  must  come  in  and 


The  Greedy  Youngster  145 

get  something  to  eat,  he  said.  The  youngster 
thought  so  too,  and  he  alone  ate  what  was 
prepared  both  for  master  and  servants,  and 
still  he  was  only  half  satisfied. 

"He  is  the  right  sort  of  man  for  a  labourer, 
but  he  is  a  terrible  eater,  to  be  sure,''  thought 
the  farmer.  "A  man  like  him  would  eat  a 
poor  farmer  out  of  house  and  home  before 
anybody  knew  a  word  about  it,"  he  said.  He 
had  no  more  work  for  him;  it  was  best  foi 
him  to  go  to  the  king's  palace. 

The  youngster  set  out  for  the  palace,  where 
he  got  a  place  at  once.  There  was  plenty  of 
food  and  plenty  of  work.  He  was  to  be  errand 
boy,  and  to  help  the  girls  to  carry  wood  and 
water  and  do  other  odd  jobs.  So  he  asked 
what  he  was  to  do  first. 

"You  had  better  chop  some  wood  in  the 
mean  time,"  they  said.  Yes,  he  commenced 
to  chop  and  cut  wood  till  the  splinters  flew 
about  him.  It  was  not  long  before  he  had 
chopped  up  everything  in  the  place,  both 
firewood  and  timber,  both  rafters  and  beams, 
and  when  he  was  ready  with  it,  he  came  in 
and  asked  what  he  was  to  do  now. 

"You  can  finish  chopping  the  wood,"  they 
said. 


146     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

"There  is  no  more  to  chop/'  he  answered. 

That  could  not  be  possible,  thought  the 
overlooker,  and  had  a  look  into  the  wood-shed. 
But  yes,  the  youngster  had  chopped  up  every- 
thing; he  had  even  cut  up  the  timber  and 
planks  in  the  place.  This  was  vexatious,  the 
overlooker  said;  and  then  he  told  the  youngster 
that  he  should  not  taste  food  until  he  had  gone 
into  the  forest  and  cut  just  as  much  timber 
as  he  had  chopped  up  for  firewood. 

The  youngster  went  to  the  smithy  and  got 
the  smith  to  help  him  to  make  an  axe  of  ^yq 
hundredweight  of  iron,  and  then  he  set  out 
for  the  forest  and  began  to  make  a  regular 
clearance,  not  only  of  the  pine  and  the  lofty 
fir  trees,  but  of  everything  else  which  was  to 
be  found  in  the  king's  forests,  and  in  the 
neighbours'  as  well.  He  did  not  stop  to  cut 
the  branches  or  the  tops  off,  but  he  left  them 
lying  there  as  if  a  hurricane  had  blown  them 
down.  He  put  a  proper  load  on  the  sledge 
and  put  all  the  horses  to  it,  but  they  could 
not  even  move  it;  so  he  took  the  horses  by 
the  heads  to  give  the  sledge  a  start,  but  he 
pulled  so  hard  that  the  horses'  heads  came  off. 
He  then  turned  the  horses  out  of  the  shafts 
and  drew  the  load  himself. 


The  Greedy  Youngster  147 

When  he  came  to  the  palace,  the  king  and 
his  overlooker  were  standing  in  the  hall  to 
give  him  a  scolding  for  having  destroyed  the 
forest  —  the  overlooker  had  been  there  and 
seen  what  he  had  been  doing.  But  when 
the  king  saw  the  youngster  dragging  half 
the  forest  after  him,  he  got  both  angry 
and  afraid;  but  he  thought  he  had  better 
be  a  little  careful  with  him,  since  he  was 
strong. 

"Well,  you  are  a  wonderful  workman,  to  be 
sure,"  said  the  king;  "but  how  much  do  you 
eat  at  a  time,  because  I  suppose  you  are  hun- 
gry now?'' 

Oh,  when  he  was  tortiave  a  proper  meal  of 
porridge,  it  would  take  twelve  barrels  of  meal 
to  make  it,  thought  the  youngster;  but  when 
he  had  put  that  away,  he  could  wait  awhile, 
of  course,  for  his  next  meal. 

It  took  some  time  to  boil  such  a  dish  of 
porridge,  and  meantime  he  was  to  bring  in 
a  Httle  firewood  for  the  cook.  He  put  a  lot 
of  wood  on  a  sledge,  but  when  he  was  coming 
through  the  door  with  it  he  was  a  Httle  rough 
and  careless  again.  The  house  got  almost 
out  of  shape,  and  all  the  joists  creaked;  he 
was  very  near  dragging  do^vn  the  whole  palace. 


148     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

When  the  porridge  was  nearly  ready,  they 
sent  him  out  to  call  the  people  home  from  the 
fields.  He  shouted  so  that  the  mountains 
and  hills  around  rang  with  echoes,  but  the 
people  did  not  come  quick  enough  for  him. 
He  came  to  blows  v/ith  them,  and  killed  twelve 
of  them. 

^^You  have  killed  twelve  men,''  said  the 
king;  "and  you  eat  for  many  times  twelve; 
but  how  many  do  you  work  for?" 

"For  many  times  twelve  as  well,"  answered 
the  youngster. 

When  he  had  finished  his  porridge,  he  was 
to  go  into  the  barn  to  thrash.  He  took  one 
of  the  rafters  from  the  roof  and  made  a  flail 
out  of  it,  and  when  the  roof  was  about  to  fall 
in,  he  took  a  big  pine  tree  with  branches  and 
all  and  put  it  up  instead  of  the  rafter.  So 
he  went  on  thrashing  the  grain  and  the  straw 
and  the  hay  all  together.  This  was  doing 
more  damage  than  good,  for  the  corn  and  the 
chaff  flew  about  together,  and  a  cloud  of  dust 
arose  over  the  whole  palace. 

When  he  had  nearly  finished  thrashing, 
enemies  came  into  the  country,  as  a  war  was 
coming  on.  So  the  king  told  the  youngster 
that  he  should  take  men  with  him  to  go  and 


The  Greedy  Youngster  149 

meet  the  enemy  and  fight  them,  for  the  king 
thought  they  would  surely  kill  him. 

No,  he  would  not  have  any  men  with  him 
to  be  cut  to  pieces;  he  would  fight  by  himself, 
answered  the  youngster. 

"So  much  the  better,"  thought  the  king; 
"the  sooner  I  shall  get  rid  of  him;  but  he 
must  have  a  proper  club.'' 

They  sent  for  the  smith;  he  forged  a  club 
which  weighed  a  hundredweight.  "A  very 
nice  thing  to  crack  nuts  with,''  said  the  young- 
ster. So  the  smith  made  one  of  three  hundred- 
weight. "  It  would  be  very  well  for  hammering 
nails  into  boots,"  was  the  answer.  Well,  the 
smith  could  not  make  a  bigger  one  with  the 
men  he  had.  So  the  youngster  set  out  for 
the  smithy  himself,  and  made  a  club  that 
weighed  five  tons,  and  it  took  a  hundred  men 
to  turn  it  on  the  anvil.  "That  one  might 
do  for  lack  of  a  better,"  thought  the  young- 
ster. He  wanted  next  a  bag  with  some 
provisions;  they  had  to  make  one  out  of 
fifteen  oxhides,  and  they  filled  it  with  food, 
and  away  he  went  down  the  hill  with 
the  bag  on  his  back  and  the  club  on  his 
shoulder. 

When  he  came  so  far  that  the  enemy  saw 


150     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

him,  they  sent  a  soldier  to  ask  him  if  he  was 
going  to  fight  them. 

"Yes;  but  wait  a  Httle  till  I  have  had  some- 
thing to  eat,"  said  the  youngster.  He  threw 
himself  down  on  the  grass  and  began  to  eat 
with  the  big  bag  of  food  in  front  of  him. 

But  the  enemy  would  not  wait,  and  com- 
menced to  fire  at  him  at  once,  till  it  rained 
and  hailed  around  him  with  bullets. 

"I  don't  mind  these  crowberries  a  bit,'' 
said  the  youngster,  and  went  on  eating  harder 
than  ever.  Neither  lead  nor  iron  took  any 
effect  upon  him,  and  his  bag  with  food  in  front 
of  him  guarded  him  against  the  bullets  as  if 
it  were  a  rampart. 

So  they  commenced  throwing  bomb-shells 
and  firing  cannons  at  him.  He  only  grinned 
a  little  every  time  he  felt  them. 

"They  don't  hurt  me  a  bit,"  he  said.  But 
just  then  he  got  a  bomb-shell  right  down  his 
windpipe. 

" Fy ! "  he  shouted,  and  spat  it  out  again;  but 
then  a  chain-shot  made  its  way  into  his  butter- 
can,  and  another  carried  away  the  piece  of 
food  he  held  between  his  fingers. 

That  made  him  angry;  he  got  up  and  took 
his  big  club  and  struck  the  ground  with  it 


The  Greedy  Youngster  151 

asking  them  if  they  wanted  to  take  the  food 
out  of  his  mouth,  and  what  they  meant  by 
blowing  crowberries  at  him  with  those  pea- 
shooters of  theirs.  He  then  struck  the  ground 
again  till  the  hills  and  rocks  rattled  and  shook, 
and  sent  the  enemy  flying  in  the  air  like  chaff. 
This  finished  the  war. 

When  he  came  home  again,  and  asked  for 
more  work,  the  king  was  taken  quite  aback, 
for  he  thought  he  should  have  got  rid  of  him 
in  the  war.  He  knew  of  nothing  else  but  to 
send  him  on  a  message  to  the  devil. 

"You  had  better  go  to  the  devil  and  ask 
him  for  my  ground-rent,''  he  said.  The 
youngster  took  his  bag  on  his  back,  and  started 
at  once.  He  was  not  long  in  getting  there, 
but  the  devil  was  gone  to  court,  and  there  was 
no  one  at  home  but  his  mother,  and  she  said 
that  she  had  never  heard  talk  of  any  ground- 
rent.     He  had  better  call  again  another  time. 

"Yes,  call  again  to-morrow  is  always  the 
cry,"  he  said;  but  he  was  not  going  to  be  made 
a  fool  of,  he  told  her.  He  was  there,  and  there 
he  would  remain  till  he  got  the  ground-rent. 
He  had  plenty  of  time  to  wait.  But  when 
he  had  finished  aU  the  food  in  his  bag,  the 
time  hung  heavy  on  his  hands,  and  then  he 


152     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

asked  the  old  lady  for  the  ground-rent  again. 
She  had  better  pay  it  now,  he  said. 

"No,  she  was  going  to  do  nothing  of  the 
sort,"  she  said.  Her  words  were  as  firm  as 
the  old  fir  tree  just  outside  the  gates,  which 
was  so  big  that  fifteen  men  could  scarcely- 
span  it. 

But  the  youngster  climbed  right  up  in  the 
top  of  it  and  twisted  and  turned  it  as  if  it  was 
a  willow,  and  then  he  asked  her  if  she  was 
going  to  pay  the  ground-rent  now. 

Yes,  she  dared  not  do  anything  else,  and 
scraped  together  as  much  money  as  he  thought 
he  could  carry  in  his  bag.  He  then  set  out 
for  home  with  the  ground-rent,  but  as  soon 
as  he  was  gone  the  devil  came  home.  When 
he  heard  that  the  youngster  had  gone  ofi  with 
his  bag  full  of  money,  he  first  of  all  gave  his 
mother  a  hiding,  and  then  he  started  after 
him,  thinking  he  would  soon  overtake  him. 

He  soon  came  up  to  him,  for  he  had  noth- 
ing to  carry,  and  now  and  then  he  used  his 
wings;  but  the  youngster  had,  of  course,  to 
keep  to  the  ground  with  his  heavy  bag.  Just 
as  the  devil  was  at  his  heels,  he  began  to  jump 
and  run  as  fast  as  he  could.  He  kept  his  club 
behind  him  to  keep  the  devil  off,  and  thus 


The  Greedy  Youngster  153 

they  went  along,  the  youngster  holding  the 
handle  and  the  devil  tryijQg  to  catch  hold  of 
the  other  end  of  it,  till  they  came  to  a  deep 
valley.  There  the  youngster  made  a  jump 
across  from  the  top  of  one  hill  to  the  other, 
and  the  devil  was  in  such  a  hurry  to  foUow 
him  that  he  ran  his  head  against  the  club  and 
fell  down  into  the  valley  and  broke  his  leg, 
and  there  he  lay. 

"There  is  the  ground-rent,''  said  the  young- 
ster when  he  came  to  the  palace,  and  threw 
the  bag  with  the  money  to  the  king  with 
such  a  crash  that  you  could  hear  it  all  over 
the  hall. 

The  king  thanked  him,  and  appeared  to 
be  well  pleased,  and  promised  him  good  pay 
and  leave  of  absence  if  he  wished  it,  but  the 
youngster  wanted  only  more  work. 

"What  shall  I  do  now?''    he  said. 

As  soon  as  the  king  had  had  time  to  con- 
sider, he  told  him  that  he  must  go  to  the  hill- 
troll,  who  had  taken  his  grandfather's  sword. 
The  troll  had  a  castle  by  the  sea,  where  no 
one  dared  to  go. 

The  youngster  put  some  cartloads  of  food 
into  his  bag  and  set  out  again.  He  travelled 
Soth  long  and  far,  over  woods  and  hills  and 


154     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

wild  moors,  till  he  came  to  the  big  moimtains 
where  the  troll,  who  had  taken  the  sword  of 
the  king^s  grandfather,  was  Hving. 

But  the  troll  seldom  came  out  in  the  open 
air,  and  the  mountain  was  well  closed,  so  the 
yoimgster  was  not  man  enough  to  get  inside. 

So  he  joined  a  gang  of  quarrymen  who  were 
living  at  a  farm  on  top  of  the  hill,  and  who 
were  quarrying  stones  in  the  hills  about  there. 
They  had  never  had  such  help  before,  for  he 
broke  and  hammered  away  at  the  rocks  till 
the  mountain  cracked,  and  big  stones  of  the 
size  of  a  house  rolled  down  the  hill.  But  when 
he  rested  to  get  his  dinner,  for  which  he  was 
going  to  have  one  of  the  cartloads  in  his  bag, 
he  found  it  was  all  eaten  up. 

"I  have  generally  a  good  appetite  myself,'* 
said  the  youngster;  "but  the  one  who  has 
been  here  can  do  a  trifle  more  than  I,  for  he 
has  eaten  aU  the  bones  as  well." 

Thus  the  first  day  passed;  and  he  fared 
no  better  the  second.  On  the  third  day  he 
set  out  to  break  stones  again,  taking  with 
him  the  third  load  of  food,  but  he  lay  down 
behind  the  bag  and  pretended  to  be  asleep. 
All  of  a  sudden,  a  troll  with  seven  heads  came 
out  of  the  mountain  and  began  to  eat  his  food 


The  Greedy  Youngster  155 

"It's  all  ready  for  me  here,  and  I  will  eat/" 
said  the  troll. 

"We  win  see  about  that/'  said  the  young- 
ster, and  hit  the  troll  with  his  club,  so  the  heads 
rolled  down  the  hill. 

So  he  went  into  the  mountain  which  the 
troll  had  come  out  of,  and  in  there  stood  a 
horse  eating  out  of  a  barrel  of  glowing  cinders, 
and  behind  it  stood  a  barrel  of  oats. 

"Why  don't  you  eat  out  of  the  barrel  of 
oats?"  asked  the  youngster. 

"Because  I  cannot  turn  round,"  said  the 
horse. 

"But  I  wiU  soon  turn  you  round,"  said  th© 
youngster. 

"Rather  cut  my  head  off,"  said  the  horse. 

So  he  cut  its  head  off,  and  the  horse  turned 
into  a  fine  handsome  feUow.  He  said  he  had 
been  bewitched,  and  taken  into  the  mountain 
and  turned  into  a  horse  by  the  troll.  He  then 
helped  the  youngster  to  find  the  sword,  which 
the  troll  had  hidden  at  the  bottom  of  the  bed, 
and  in  the  bed  lay  the  old  mother  of  the  troll, 
asleep  and  snoring  hard. 

So  they  set  out  for  home  by  water,  but  when 
they  had  got  some  distance  out  to  sea  the  old 
'mother  came  after  them.    As  she  could  not 


156     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

overtake  them,  she  lay  down  and  began  to 
drink  the  sea,  and  she  drank  till  the  water 
fell;  but  she  could  not  drink  the  sea  dry, 
and  so  she  burst. 

When  they  came  to  land,  the  youngster 
sent  word  that  the  king  must  come  and  fetch 
the  sword.  He  sent  four  horses,  but  no,  they 
could  not  move  it;  he  sent  eight,  and  he 
sent  twelve;  but  the  sword  remained  where 
it  was.  They  were  not  able  to  stir  it  from 
the  spot.  But  the  youngster  took  it  and  carried 
it  up  to  the  palace  alone. 

The  king  could  not  beheve  his  eyes  when  he 
saw  the  youngster  back  again.  He  appeared, 
however,  to  be  pleased  to  see  him,  and  promised 
him  land  and  riches.  When  the  youngster 
wanted  more  work,  the  king  said  he  might  set 
out  for  an  enchanted  castle  he  had,  where  no 
one  dared  to  live,  and  he  would  have  to 
stop  there  till  he  had  built  a  bridge  over  the 
sound,  so  that  people  could  get  across  to  the 
castle. 

If  he  was  able  to  do  this  he  would  reward  him 
handsomely,  yes,  he  would  even  give  him  his 
daughter  in  marriage,  said  he. 

"WeU,  I  think  I  can  do  it,"  said  the 
youngster. 


The  Greedy  Youngster  157 

No  one  had  ever  got  away  alive;  those  who 
had  got  as  far  as  the  castle,  lay  there  killed 
and  torn  to  pieces  as  small  as  barley,  and  the 
king  thought  he  should  never  see  him  any 
more  if  he  would  go  thither. 

But  the  youngster  started  on  his  expedition; 
he  took  with  him  the  bag  of  food,  a  crooked, 
twisted  block  of  a  fir  tree,  an  axe,  a  wedge, 
and  some  chips  of  the  fir  root,  and  the  small 
pauper  boy  at  the  palace. 

When  he  came  to  the  sound,  he  found  the 
river  full  of  ice,  and  the  current  ran  as  strong 
as  in  a  waterfall;  but  he  stuck  his  legs  to  the 
bottom  of  the  river  and  waded  until  he  got 
safe  across. 

When  he  had  warmed  himself  and  had 
something  to  eat,  he  wanted  to  go  to  sleep; 
but  before  long  he  heard  such  a  terrible  noise, 
as  if  they  were  turning  the  castle  upside  down. 
The  door  burst  wide  open,  and  he  saw  nothing 
but  a  gaping  jaw  extending  from  the  threshold 
up  to  the  lintel. 

"There  is  a  mouthful  for  you,''  said  the 
youngster  and  threw  the  pauper  boy  into 
the  swallow:  "taste  that!  But  let  me  see 
now  who  you  are!  Perhaps  you  are  an  old 
acquaintance?  " 


158     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

And  so  it  was;  it  was  the  devil  who  was 
about  again. 

They  began  to  play  cards,  for  the  devil 
wanted  to  try  and  win  back  some  of  the  ground- 
rent  which  the  youngster  had  got  out  of  his 
mother  by  threats,  when  he  was  sent  by  the 
king  to  collect  it;  but  the  youngster  was 
always  the  fortunate  one,  for  he  put  a  cross 
on  the  back  of  all  the  good  cards,  and  when 
he  had  won  all  the  money  which  the  devil 
had  upon  him,  the  devil  had  to  pay  him  out 
of  the  gold  and  silver  which  was  in  the  castle. 

Suddenly  the  fire  went  out,  so  they  could 
not  teU  the  one  card  from  the  other. 

"We  must  chop  some  wood  now,''  said  the 
youngster,  who  drove  the  axe  into  the  fir  block, 
and  forced  the  wedge  in;  but  the  twisted, 
knotty  block  would  not  split,  although  the 
youngster  worked  as  hard  as  he  could  with 
the  axe. 

"They  say  you  are  strong,''  he  said  to  the 
devil;  "just  spit  on  your  hands,  stick  your 
claws  in,  and  tear  away,  and  let  me  see  what 
you  are  made  of." 

The  devil  did  so,  and  put  both  his  fists  into 
the  split  and  pulled  as  hard  as  he  could,  when 
the  youngster  suddenly  struck  the  wedge  out, 


The  Greedy  Youngster  159 

and  the  devil  stuck  fast  in  the  block  and  the 
youngster  let  him  also  have  a  taste  of  the  butt 
end  of  his  axe  on  his  back.  The  devil  begged 
and  prayed  so  nicely  to  be  let  loose,  but  the 
youngster  would  not  listen  to  anything  of  the 
kind  unless  he  promised  that  he  would  never 
come  there  any  more  and  create  any  disturb- 
ance. He  also  had  to  promise  that  he  would 
build  a  bridge  over  the  sound,  so  that  people 
could  pass  over  it  at  all  times  of  the  year,  and 
it  should  be  ready  when  the  ice  was  gone. 

"  They  are  very  hard  conditions,''  said  the 
'levil;  but  there  was  no  other  way  out  of  it  —  if 
the  devil  wanted  to  be  set  free,  he  would  have 
to  promise  it.  He  bargained,  however,  that 
he  should  have  the  first  soul  that  went  across 
the  bridge.     That  was  to  be  the  toll. 

Yes,  he  should  have  that,  said  the  youngster. 
So  the  devil  was  let  loose,  and  he  started  home. 
But  the  youngster  lay  down  to  sleep,  and  slept 
till  far  into  the  day. 

When  the  king  came  to  see  if  he  was  cut 
and  chopped  into  small  pieces,  he  had  to 
wade  through  all  the  money  before  he  came 
to  his  bedside.  There  was  money  in  heaps  and 
in  bags  which  reached  far  up  the  wall,  and  the 
youngster  lay  in  bed  asleep  and  snoring  hard. 


i6o     Folk  Tales  Every  Chila  Should  Know 

"Lord  help  me  and  my  daughter/'  said  the 
king  when  he  saw  that  the  youngster  was 
alive.  Well,  all  was  good  and  well  done, 
that  no  one  could  deny;  but  there  was  no 
hurry  talking  of  the  wedding  before  the  bridge 
was  ready. 

One  day  the  bridge  stood  ready,  and  the 
devil  was  there  waiting  for  the  toll  which  he 
had  bargained  for. 

The  youngster  wanted  the  king  to  go  with 
him  and  try  the  bridge,  but  the  king  had  no 
mind  to  do  it.  So  he  mounted  a  horse  himself, 
and  put  the  fat  dairy-maid  in  the  palace  on 
the  pommel  in  front  of  him;  she  looked  almost 
like  a  big  fir  block,  and  so  he  rode  over  the 
bridge,  which  thundered  under  the  horse's 
feet. 

"Where  is  the  toll?  Where  have  you  got 
the  soul?"  cried  the  devil. 

"Why,  inside  this  fir  block,"  said  the  young- 
ster; "if  you  want  it  you  will  have  to  spit  in 
your  hands  and  take  it." 

"No,  many  thanks!  If  she  does  not  come 
to  me,  I  am  sure  I  shan't  take  her,"  said  the 
devil.  "You  got  me  once  into  a  pinch,  and 
I'll  take  care  you  don't  get  me  into  another," 
and  with  that  he  flew  straight  home  to  his  old 


The  Greedy  Youngster  i6i 

mother,  and  since  that  time  he  has  never 
been  heard  or  seen  thereabouts. 

The  youngster  went  home  to  the  palace  and 
asked  for  the  reward  the  king  had  promised 
him,  and  when  the  king  wanted  to  get  out  of 
it,  and  would  not  stick  to  what  he  had  promised, 
the  youngster  said  it  was  best  he  got  a  good 
bag  of  food  ready  for  him  and  he  would  take 
his  reward  himself. 

Yes,  the  king  would  see  to  that,  and  when 
the  bag  was  ready  the  youngster  asked  the 
king  to  come  outside  the  door.  The  young- 
ster then  gave  the  king  such  a  kick,  which 
sent  him  flying  up  in  the  air.  The  bag  he 
threw  after  him  that  he  might  not  be  without 
food;  and  if  he  has  not  come  down  again  by 
this  he  is  floating  about  with  his  bag  between 
heaven  and  earth  to  this  very  day. 


XVIII 

HANS,  WHO  MADE  THE  PRINCESS 
LAUGH 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  was  a  king,  who 
had  a  daughter,  and  she  was  so  lovely 
that  the  reports  of  her  beauty  went  far  and 
wide;  but  she  was  so  melancholy  that  she 
never  laughed,  and  besides  she  was  so  grand 
and  proud  that  she  said  "No''  to  all  who  came 
to  woo  her  —  she  would  not  have  any  of  them, 
were  they  ever  so  fine,  whether  they  were 
princes  or  noblemen. 

The  king  was  tired  of  this  whim  of  hers 
long  ago,  and  thought  she  ought  to  get  married 
like  other  people;  there  was  nothing  she  need 
wait  for  —  she  was  old  enough  and  she  would 
not  be  any  richer  either,  for  she  was  to  have 
half  the  kingdom,  which  she  inherited  after 
her  mother. 

So  he  made  known  every  Sunday  after 
the  service,  from  the  steps  outside  the  church, 
that  he  that  could  make  his  daughter  laugh 

162 


EanSy  Who  Made  the  Princess  Laugh      163 

should  have  both  her  and  half  the  kingdom. 
But  if  there  were  any  one  who  tried  and  could 
not  make  her  laugh,  he  would  have  three  red 
stripes  cut  out  of  his  back  and  salt  rubbed  into 
them  —  and,  sad  to  relate,  there  were  many 
sore  backs  in  that  kingdom.  Lovers  from 
south  and  from  north,  from  east  and  from  west, 
came  to  try  their  luck  —  they  thought  it  was 
an  easy  thing  to  make  a  princess  laugh.  They 
were  a  queer  lot  altogether,  but  for  all  their 
cleverness  and  for  all  the  tricks  and  pranks 
they  played,  the  princess  was  just  as  serious 
and  immovable  as  ever. 

But  close  to  the  palace  lived  a  man  who 
had  three  sons,  and  they  had  also  heard  that 
the  king  had  made  known  that  he  who  could 
make  the  princess  laugh  should  have  her  and 
half  the  kingdom. 

The  eldest  of  the  brothers  wanted  to  try 
first,  and  away  he  went;  and  when  he  came 
to  the  palace,  he  told  the  king  he  wouldn't 
mind  trying  to  make  the  princess  laugh. 

"Yes,  yes!  that's  all  very  well,''  said  the 
king;  "but  I  am  afraid  it's  of  very  little  use, 
my  man.  There  have  been  many  here  to 
try  their  luck,  but  my  daughter  is  just  as  sad, 
and  I  am  afraid  it  is  no  good  trying.     I  do 


264     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

not  like  to  see  any  more  suffer  on  that 
account." 

But  the  lad  thought  he  would  try  anyhow. 
It  couldn't  be  such  a  difficult  thing  to  make  a 
princess  laugh  at  him,  for  had  not  everybody, 
both  grand  and  simple,  laughed  so  many  a 
time  at  him  when  he  served  as  soldier  and  went 
through  his  drill  under  Sergeant  Nils. 

So  he  went  out  on  the  terrace  outside  the 
princess's  windows  and  began  drilling  just 
as  if  Sergeant  Nils  himself  were  there.  But  all 
in  vain!  The  princess  sat  just  as  serious  and 
immovable  as  before,  and  so  they  took  him 
and  cut  three  broad,  red  stripes  out  of  his 
back  and  sent  him  home. 

He  had  no  sooner  arrived  home  than  his 
second  brother  wanted  to  set  out  and  try  his 
luck.  He  was  a  schoolmaster,  and  a  funny 
figure  he  was  altogether.  He  had  one  leg 
shorter  than  the  other,  and  limped  terribly 
when  he  walked.  One  moment  he  was  no 
bigger  than  a  boy,  but  the  next  moment  when 
he  raised  himself  up  on  his  long  leg  he  was  as 
big  and  tall  as  a  giant  —  and  besides  he  was 
great  at  preaching. 

When  he  came  to  the  palace,  and  said  that 
he  wanted  to  make  the  princess  laugh,  the 


EanSj  Who  Made  the  Princess  Laugh      165 

king  thought  that  it  was  not  so  unlikely  that 
he  might;  "but  I  pity  you,  if  you  don't  suc- 
ceed/' said  the  king,  "for  we  cut  the  stripes 
broader  and  broader  for  every  one  that  tries. '^ 

So  the  schoohnaster  went  out  on  the  terrace, 
and  took  his  place  outside  the  princess's 
window,  where  he  began  preaching  and  chant- 
ing imitating  seven  of  the  parsons,  and  reading 
and  singing  just  like  seven  of  the  clerks  whom 
they  had  had  in  the  parish. 

The  king  laughed  at  the  schoolmaster  till 
he  was  obhged  to  hold  on  to  the  door-post, 
and  the  princess  was  just  on  the  point  of  smil- 
ing, but  suddenly  she  was  as  sad  and  immov- 
able as  ever,  and  so  it  fared  no  better  with 
Paul  the  schoolmaster  than  with  Peter  the 
soldier  —  for  Peter  and  Paul  were  their  names, 
you  must  know! 

So  they  took  Paul  and  cut  three  red  stripes 
out  of  his  back,  put  salt  into  them,  and  sent 
him  home  again. 

Well,  the  youngest  brother  thought  he  would 
have  a  try  next.  His  name  was  Hans.  But 
the  brothers  laughed  and  made  fun  of  him,  and 
showed  him  their  sore  backs.  Besides,  the 
father  would  not  give  him  leave  to  go,  for  he 
said  it  was  no  use  his  trying,  who  had  so  little 


1 66      Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

sense;  all  he  could  do  was  to  sit  in  a  comer  on 
the  hearth,  like  a  cat,  rooting  about  in  the 
ashes  and  cutting  chips.  But  Hans  would 
not  give  in  —  he  begged  and  prayed  so  long, 
till  they  got  tired  of  his  whimpering,  and  so 
he  got  leave  to  go  to  the  king's  palace  and  try 
his  luck. 

When  he  arrived  at  the  palace  he  did  not 
say  he  had  come  to  try  to  make  the  princess 
laugh,  but  asked  if  he  could  get  a  situation 
there.  No,  they  had  no  situation  for  him;  but 
Hans  was  not  so  easily  put  off  —  they  might 
want  one  to  carry  wood  and  water  for  the 
kitchenmaid  in  such  a  big  place  as  that,  he 
said.  Yes,  the  king  thought  so  too,  and  to 
get  rid  of  the  lad  he  gave  him  leave  to  remain 
there  and  carry  wood  and  water  for  the 
kitchenmaid. 

One  day,  when  he  was  going  to  fetch  water 
from  the  brook,  he  saw  a  big  fish  in  the  water 
just  under  an  old  root  of  a  fir-tree,  which  the 
current  had  carried  all  the  soil  away  from. 
He  put  his  bucket  quietly  under  the  fish  and 
caught  it.  As  he  was  going  home  to  the  palace, 
he  met  an  old  woman  leading  a  golden  goose. 

"Good  day,  grandmother!''  said  Hans. 
"That's  a  fine  bird  you  have  got  there;  and 


Hans,  Who  Made  the  Princess  Laugh      167 

such  splendid  feathers  too!  he  shines  a  long 
way  off.  If  one  had  such  feathers,  one  needn^t 
be  chopping  firewood." 

The  woman  thought  just  as  much  of  the 
fish  which  Hans  had  in  the  bucket,  and  said 
if  Hans  would  give  her  the  fish  he  should  have 
the  golden  goose;  and  this  goose  was  such 
that  if  any  one  touched  it  he  would  be  sticking 
fast  to  it  if  he  only  said:  "If  you'll  come  along, 
then  hang  on." 

Yes,  Hans  would  willingly  exchange  on 
those  terms.  "A  bird  is  as  good  as  a  fish  any 
day,"  he  said  to  himself.  "If  it  is  as  you  say, 
I  might  use  it  instead  of  a  fish-hook,"  he  said 
to  the  woman,  and  felt  greatly  pleased  with 
the  possession  of  the  goose. 
^He  had  not  gone  far  before  he  met  another 
old  woman.  When  she  saw  the  splendid  golden 
goose,  she  must  go  and  stroke  it.  She  made 
herself  so  friendly  and  spoke  so  nicely  to  Hans, 
and  asked  him  to  let  her  stroke  that  lovely 
golden  goose  of  his. 

"Oh,  yes!"  said  Hans,  "but  you  mustn't 
pluck  off  any  of  its  feathers!" 

Just  as  she  stroked  the  bird,  Hans  said: 
"If  you'll  come  along,  then  hang  on!" 

The  woman  pulled  and  tore,  but  she  had 


1 68     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

to  hang  on,  whether  she  would  or  no,  and  Hans 
walked  on,  as  if  he  only  had  the  goose  with  him. 

When  he  had  gone  some  distance,  he  met 
a  man  who  had  a  spite  against  the  woman 
for  a  trick  she  had  played  upon  him.  When 
he  saw  that  she  fought  so  hard  to  get  free  and 
seemed  to  hang  on  so  fast,  he  thought  he 
might  safely  venture  to  pay  her  off  for  the 
grudge  he  owed  her,  and  so  he  gave  her  a  kick. 

"If  you'll  come  along,  then  hang  on!' 
said  Hans,  and  the  man  had  to  hang  on  and 
limp  along  on  one  leg,  whether  he  would  or 
no;  and  when  he  tried  to  tear  himself  loose,  he 
made  it  still  worse  for  himself,  for  he  was  very 
nearly  faUing  on  his  back  whenever  he  strug- 
gled to  get  free. 

So  on  they  went  till  they  came  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  the  palace.  There  they  met  the 
king's  smith;  he  was  on  his  way  to  the  smithy, 
and  had  a  large  pair  of  tongs  in  his  hand.  This 
smith  was  a  merry  fellow,  and  was  always 
full  of  mad  pranks  and  trijks,  and  when  he 
saw  this  procession  coming  jumping  and  limp- 
ing along,  he  began  laughing  till  he  was  bent 
in  two,  but  suddenly  he  said : 

"This  must  be  a  new  flock  of  geese  for  the 
princess:  but  who  can  tell  which  is  goose  and 


Hans,  Who  Made  the  Princess  Laugh      169 

which  is  gander?  I  suppose  Jt  must  be  the 
gander  toddling  on  in  front.  Goosey,  goosey!" 
he  called,  and  pretended  to  be  strewing  com 
out  of  his  hands  as  when  feeding  geese. 

But  they  did  not  stop.  The  woman  and 
the  man  only  looked  in  great  rage  at  the  smith 
for  making  game  of  them.  So  said  the  smith: 
"It  would  be  great  fun  to  see  if  I  could  stop 
the  whole  flock,  many  as  they  are!"  —  He 
was  a  strong  man,  and  seized  the  old  man 
with  his  tongs  from  behind  in  his  trousers, 
and  the  man  shouted  and  struggled  hard,  but 
Hans  said: 

"If  you'll  come  along,  then  hang  on!" 

And  so  the  smith  had  to  hang  on  too.  He 
bent  his  back  and  stuck  his  heels  in  the  ground 
when  they  went  up  a  hill  and  tried  to  get  away, 
but  it  was  of  no  use;  he  stuck  on  to  the  other 
as  if  he  had  been  screwed  fast  in  the  great 
vise  in  the  smithy,  and  whether  he  liked  it 
or  not,  he  had  to  dance  along  with  the  others. 

When  they  came  near  the  palace,  the  farm- 
dog  ran  against  them  and  barked  at  them, 
as  if  they  were  a  gang  of  tramps,  and  when 
the  princess  came  to  look  out  of  her  window 
to  see  what  was  the  matter,  and  saw  this 
procession,  she  burst  out  laughing.    But  Hans 


170     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

was  not  satisfied  with  that.  "Just  wait  a 
bit,  and  she  will  laugh  still  louder  very  soon," 
he  said,  and  made  a  tour  round  the  palace 
with  his  followers. 

When  they  came  past  the  kitchen,  the  door 
was  open  and  the  cook  was  just  boiHng  por- 
ridge, but  when  she  saw  Hans  and  his  train 
after  him,  she  rushed  out  of  the  door  with  the 
ix)rridge-stick  in  one  hand  and  a  big  ladle  full 
of  boiling  porridge  in  the  other,  and  she  laughed 
till  her  sides  shook;  but  when  she  saw  the 
smith  there  as  well,  she  thought  she  would 
have  burst  with  laughter.  When  she  had  had 
a  regular  good  laugh,  she  looked  at  the  golden 
goose  again  and  thought  it  was  so  lovely  that 
she  must  stroke  it. 

"Hans,  HansP'  she  cried,  and  ran  after 
him  with  the  ladle  in  her  hand;  "just  let  me 
stroke  that  lovely  bird  of  yours." 

"Rather  let  her  stroke  me!"  said  the  smith, 

"Very  well,"  said  Hans. 

But  when  the  cook  heard  this,  she  got  very 
angry.  "What  is  it  you  say!"  she  cried,  and 
gave  the  smith  a  smack  with  the  ladle. 

"If  you'll  come  along,  then  hang  on!"  said 
Hans,  and  so  she  stuck  fast  to  the  others  too, 
and  for  all  her  scolding  and  all  her  tearing 


Bans  J  Who  Made  the  Princess  Laugh      171 

and    pulling,    she    had    to    limp   along   with 
them. 

And  when  they  came  past  the  princess's 
window  again,  she  was  still  there  waiting  for 
them,  but  when  she  saw  that  they  had  got 
hold  of  the  cook  too,  with  the  ladle  and 
porridge-stick,  she  laughed  till  the  king  had 
to  hold  her  up.  So  Hans  got  the  princess  and 
half  the  kingdom,  and  they  had  a  wedding 
which  was  heard  of  far  and  wide. 


XTX 

THE  STORY  OF  TOM  TIT  TOT* 

WELL,  once  upon  a  time  there  were  a 
woman,  and  she  baked  five  pies.  And 
when  they  come  out  of  the  oven,  they  was 
that  overbaked  the  crust  were  too  hard  to 
eat.     So  she  says  to  her  darter: 

"Darter,''  says  she,  "put  you  them  there 
pies  on  the  shelf  an'  leave  'em  there  a  little, 
an'  they'll  come  agin — "  She  meant,  you 
know,  the  crust  'ud  get  soft. 

But  the  gal,  she  says  to  herself,  "Well,  if 
they'll  come  agin,  I'll  ate  'em  now."  And 
she  set  to  work  and  ate  'em  all,  first  and  last. 

Well,  come  supper  time,  the  woman  she 
said,  "  Goo  you  and  git  one  o'  them  there  pies; 
I  daresay  they've  come  agin,  now." 

The  gal,  she  went  an'  she  looked,  and  there 
warn't  nothin'  but  the  dishes.  So  back  she  come 
and  says  she,  "Noo,  they  ain't  come  agin." 

"Not  none  on  'em?"  says  the  mother. 

*  An  old  Suffolk  tale,  given  in  the  dialect  of  East  Anglia. 
172 


The  Story  of  Tom  Tit  Tot  173 

"Not  none  on  'em,"  says  she. 

"Well,  come  agin,  or  not  come  agin,"  says 
the  woman,  "I'll  ha'  one  for  supper." 

"But  you  can't,  if  they  ain't  come,"  says  the 
gal. 

"But  I  can,"  says  she.  "  Goo  you  and  bring 
the  best  of  'em." 

"Best  or  worst,"  says  the  gal,  "I've  ate  'em 
aU,  and  you  can't  ha'  one  till  that's  come  agin.'* 

Well,  the  woman  she  were  wholly  bate,  and 
she  took  her  spinnin'  to  the  door  to  spin,  and 
as  she  span  she  sang: 

"  My  darter  ha'  ate  five,  five  pies  to-day — 
My  darter  ha'  ate  five,  five  pies  to-day." 

The  king,  he  were  a  comin'  down  the  street 
and  he  hard  her  sing,  but  what  she  sang  he 
couldn't  hare,  so  he  stopped  and  said: 

"What  were  that  you  was  a  singin  of, 
woman?" 

The  woman,  she  were  ashamed  to  let  him 
hare  what  her  darter  had  been  a-doin',  so  she 
sang,  'stids  o'  that: 

"  My  darter  ha'  spun  five,  five  skeins  to-day  — 
My  darter  ha'  spun  five,  five  skeins  to-day." 


174     ^olk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

"S'ars  o'  mine!"  said  the  king,  "I  never 
heerd  tell  of  any  one  as  could  do  that." 

Then  he  said:  "Look  you  here,  I  want  a 
wife,  and  I'll  marry  your  darter.  But  look 
you  here,"  says  he,  "leven  months  out  o* 
the  year  she  shall  have  all  the  vittles  she 
lilces  to  eat,  and  all  the  gownds  she  likes  to 
git,  and  all  the  cumpny  she  likes  to  hev;  but 
the  last  month  o'  the  year  she'll  ha'  to  spin 
five  skeins  iv'ry  day,  an'  if  she  doon't,  I  shall 
km  her." 

"All  right,"  says  the  woman;  for  she 
thowt  what  a  grand  marriage  that  was. 
And  as  for  them  five  skeins,  when  te 
come  tew,  there'd  be  plenty  o'  ways  of  gettin* 
out  of  it^  and  HkeHest,  he'd  ha'  forgot 
about   it. 

Well,  so  they  were  married.  An'  for  'leven 
months  the  gal  had  all  the  vittles  she  liked  to 
ate,  and  all  the  gownds  she  liked  to  git,  an' 
all  the  cumpny  she  liked  to  have. 

But  when  the  time  was  gettin'  oover,  she 
began  to  think  about  them  there  skeins  an' 
to  wonder  if  he  had  'em  in  mind.  But  not  one 
word  did  he  say  about  'em,  an'  she  whoolly 
thowt  he'd  forgot  'em. 

Howsivir,  the  last  day  o'  the  last  month. 


The  Story  of  Tom  Tit  Tot  175 

he  takes  her  to  a  room  she'd  niver  set  eyes  on 
afore.  There  wo/n't  nothin'  in  it  but  a  spin- 
nin'  wheel  and  a  stool.  An'  says  he,  "Now, 
me  dear,  hare  you'll  be  shut  in  to-morrow 
with  some  vittles  and  some  flax,  and  if  you 
hain't  spun  five  skeins  by  the  night,  yar 
hid'U  goo  off." 

An'  awa'  he  went  about  his  business. 

Well,  she  were  that  frightened.  She'd  alius 
been  such  a  gatless  gal,  that  she  didn't 
se  much  as  know  how  to  spin,  an'  what  were 
she  to  dew  to-morrer,  with  no  one  to  come 
nigh  her  to  help  her?  She  sat  down  on  a 
stool  in  the  kitchen,  and  lork!  how  she  did 
cry! 

Howsivir,  all  on  a  sudden  she  hard  a  sort 
of  a  knockin'  low  down  on  the  door.  She 
upped  and  oped  it,  an'  what  should  she  see 
but  a  small  Httle  black  thing  with  a  long  tail. 
That  looked  up  at  her  right  kewrious,  an' 
that  said: 

"What  are  yew  a-cryin'  for?" 

"Wha's  that  to  yew?"  says  she. 

"Niver  yew  mind,"  that  said,  "but  tell  me 
what  you're  a  cryin'  for." 

"That  oon't  dew  me  noo  good  if  I  dew/* 
says  she. 


176     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

"Yew  doon't  know  that,"  that  said,  an' 
twirled  that's  tail  round. 

"Well/'  says  she,  "that  oon't  dew  no  harm, 
if  that  doon't  dew  no  good,"  and  she  upped 
and  told  about  the  pies  an'  the  skeins  an' 
everything. 

"This  is  what  I'll  dew,"  says  the  little 
black  thing:  "I'll  come  to  yar  winder  iv'ry 
mornin'  an'  take  the  flax  an'  bring  it  spun  at 
night." 

"What's  your  pay?"  says  she. 

That  looked  out  o'  the  corners  o'  that's 
eyes  an'  that  said:  "I'll  give  you  three  guesses 
every  night  to  guess  my  name,  an'  if  you 
hain't  guessed  it  afore  the  month's  up,  yew 
shall  be  mine." 

Well,  she  thowt  she'd  be  sure  to  guess  that's 
name  afore  the  month  was  up.  "All  right," 
says  she,  "I  agree." 

"AU  right,"  that  says,  an'  lork!  how  that 
twirled  that's  tail. 

Well,  the  next  day,  har  husband,  he  took 
her  inter  the  room,  an'  there  was  the  flax  an' 
the  day's  vittles. 

"Now,  there's  the  flax,"  says  he,  "an'  if 
that  ain't  spun  up  this  night,  off  goo  yar  hid." 
An'  then  he  went  out  an'  locked  the  door. 


The  Story  of  Tom  Tit  Tot  177 

He'd  hardly  goon,  when  there  was  a  knockin' 
agin  the  winder. 

She  upped  and  she  oped  it,  and  there  sure 
enough  was  the  Httle  oo'd  thing  a  settin'  on 
the  ledge. 

"Where's  the  flax?"  says  he. 

"Here  te  be,"  says  she.  And  she  gonned 
it  to  him. 

Well,  come  the  evenin,'  a  knockin'  come 
agin  to  the  winder.  She  upped  an'  she  oped 
it,  and  there  were  the  Httle  oo'd  thing,  with 
five  skeins  of  flax  on  his  arm. 

"Here  te  be,"  says  he,  an'  he  gonned  it  to  her. 

"Now,  what's  my  name?"  says  he. 

"What,  is  that  Bill?"  says  she. 

"Noo,  that  ain't,"  says  he.  An'  he  twirled 
his  tail. 

"Is  that  Ned?"  says  she. 

"Noo,  that  ain't,"  says  he.  An'  he  twirled 
his  tail. 

"WeU,  is  that  Mark?"  says  she. 

"Noo,  that  ain't,"  says  he.  An'  he  twirled 
his  tail  harder,  an'  awa'  he  flew. 

Well,  when  har  husban'  he  come  in,  there 
was  the  five  skeins  riddy  for  him. 

"I  see  I  shorn't  hev  for  to  kill  you  to-night, 
me  dare,"  says  he.     "You'll  hev  yar  vittles 


176     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

and  yar  flax  in  the  morninV'  says  he,  an' 
away  he  goes. 

Well,  ivery  day  the  flax  an'  the  vittles, 
they  was  browt,  an'  ivery  day  that  there  Kttle 
black  impet  used  for  to  come  moniin's  and 
evenin's.  An'  all  the  day  the  darter,  she 
set  a  tr3dn'  fur  to  think  of  names  to  say  to  it 
when  te  come  at  night.  But  she  niver  hot  on 
the  right  one.  An'  as  that  got  to-warts  the 
ind  o'  the  month,  the  impet  that  began  for  to 
look  soo  mahceful,  an'  that  twirled  that's 
tail  faster  an'  faster  each  time  she  gave  a  guess. 

At  last  te  came  to  the  last  day  but  one. 
The  impet  that  come  at  night  along  o'  the 
five  skeins,  an'  that  said: 

"What,  hain't  yew  got  my  name  yet?" 

"Is  that  Nicodemus?"  says  she. 

"Noo,  'tain't,"  that  says. 

"Is  that  Sammle?"  says  she. 

■"Noo,  t'ain't,"  that  says. 

"A-well,  is  that  Methusalem?"  says  she. 

"Noo,  t'ain't  that  norther,"  he  says. 

Then  that  looks  at  her  with  that's  eyes 
like  a  cool  o'  fire,  an  that  says,  "Woman, 
there's  only  to-morrer  night,  an'  then  yar'll 
be  mine!"    An'  away  te  flew. 

Well,    she    felt    that    horrud.    Howsome- 


The  Story  of  Tom  Tit  Tot  179 

diver,  she  hard  the  king  a-comin'  along  the 
passage.  In  he  came,  an'  when  he  see  the 
-B.ve  skeins,  he  says,  says  he: 

"Well,  me  dare,"  says  he,  "I  don't  see  but 
what  yew'll  ha'  your  skeins  ready  to-morrer 
night  as  well,  an'  as  I  reckon  I  shorn't  ha'  to 
kill  you,  I'll  ha'  supper  in  here  to-night."  So 
they  brought  supper  an'  another  stool  for  him, 
and  down  the  tew  they  sot. 

Well,  he  hadn't  eat  but  a  mouthful  or  so, 
when  he  stops  and  begins  to  laugh. 

"What  is  it?"  says  she. 

"A-why,"  says  he,  "I  was  out  a-huntin' 
to-day,  an'  I  got  away  to  a  place  in  the  wood 
I'd  never  seen  afore.  An'  there  was  an  old 
chalk  pit.  An'  I  heerd  a  sort  of  a  hummin', 
kind  o'.  So  I  got  off  my  hobby,  an'  I  went 
right  quiet  to  the  pit,  an'  I  looked  down. 
Well,  what  should  there  be  but  the  funniest 
little  black  thing  yew  iver  set  eyes  on.  An' 
what  was  that  a  dewin'  on,  but  that  had  a 
little  spinnin'  wheel,  an'  that  were  a-spinnin' 
wonnerful  fast,  an'  a-twirlin'  that's  tail.  An' 
as  that  span,  that  sang: 

"  Nimmy,  nimmy  not, 
My  name's  Tom  Tit  Tot." 


i8o     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

Well,  when  the  darter  heerd  this,  she 
fared  as  if  she  could  ha'  jumped  outer 
her  skin  for  joy,  but  she  di'n't  say  a 
word. 

Next  day,  that  there  Httle  thing  looked 
soo  mahceful  when  he  come  for  the  flax. 
An'  when  night  came,  she  heerd  that 
a-knockin'  agin  the  winder  panes.  She  oped 
the  winder,  an'  that  come  right  in  on 
the  ledge.  That  were  grinnin'  from  are  to 
are,  an'  Oo[  tha's  tail  were  twirlin'  round 
so  fast. 

"What's  my  name?"  that  says,  as  that 
gonned  her  the  skeins. 

"Is  that  Solomon?"  she  says,  pretendin* 
to  be  a-feard. 

"Noo,  tain't,"  that  says,  an' that  come  fud- 
der  inter  the  room 

"Well,  is  that  Zebedee?"  says  she  agin. 

"Noo,  tain't,"  says  the  impet.  An'  then 
that  laughed  an'  twirled  that's  tail  till  yew 
cou'n't  hardly  see  it. 

"Take  time,  woman,"  that  says;  "next 
guess,  an'  you're  mine."  An'  that  stretched 
out  that's  black  hands  at  her. 

Well,  she  backed  a  step  or  two,  an' 
she    looked    at    it,    and    then    she    laughed 


The  Story  of  Tom  Tit  Tot  i8i 

out,   an'  says  she,  a  pointin'  of  her  finger 
at  it: 

"  Nimmy,  nimmy  not, 
Yar  name's  Tom  Tit  Tot." 


Well,  when  that  hard  her,  that  shruck 
awful  an'  awa'  that  flew  into  the  dark,  an' 
she  niver  saw  it  noo  more. 


XX 

THE   PEASANT  STORY  OF  NAPOLEON 

[Goguelet,  an  old  soldier  who  fought  under  Napoleon,  tells  the 
story  of  his  wonderful  General  and  Emperor  to  a  group  of 
eager  listeners  in  the  country  doctor's  barn.] 

YOU  see,  my  friends,  Napoleon  was  bom 
in  Corsica,  a  French  island,  warmed 
by  the  sun  of  Italy,  where  it  is  like  a  furnace, 
and  where  the  people  kill  each  other,  from 
father  to  son,  all  about  nothing:  that's  a  way 
they  have.  To  begin  with  the  marvel  of  the 
thing  —  his  mother,  who  was  the  handsomest 
woman  of  her  time,  and  a  knowing  one,  be- 
thought herself  of  dedicating  him  to  God,  so 
that  he  might  escape  the  dangers  of  his  child- 
hood and  future  hfe;  for  she  had  dreamed 
that  the  world  was  set  on  fire  the  day  he  was 
born.  And,  indeed,  it  was  a  prophecy!  So 
she  asked  God  to  protect  him,  on  condition  that 
Napoleon  should  restore  His  holy  religion,  which 
was  then  cast  to  the  ground.  Well,  that  was 
agreed  upon,  and  we  shall  see  what  came  of  it. 

182 


The  Peasant  Story  of  Napoleon  183 

"Follow  me  closely,  and  tell  me  if  what  you 
tear  is  in  the  nature  or  man. 

"Sure  and  certain  it  is  that  none  but  a  man 
who  conceived  the  idea  of  making  a  compact 
with  God  could  have  passed  unhurt  through 
the  enemy's  Hues,  through  cannon-balls,  and 
discharges  of  grape-shot  that  swept  the  rest 
of  us  off  like  flies,  and  always  respected  his 
head.  I  had  proof  of  that  —  I  myself  —  at 
Eylau.  I  see  him  now,  as  he  rode  up  a  height, 
took  his  field-glass,  looked  at  the  battle,  and 
said,  'All  goes  well.'  One  of  those  plumed 
busybodies,  who  plagued  him  considerably 
and  followed  him  everywhere,  even  to  his 
meals,  so  they  said,  thought  to  play  the  wag, 
and  took  the  Emperor's  place  as  he  rode  away. 
Ho!  in  a  twinkhng,  head  and  plume  were  off! 
You  must  understand  that  Napoleon  had 
promised  to  keep  the  secret  of  his  compact 
aU  to  himseff.  That's  why  all  those  who 
followed  him,  even  his  nearest  friends,  fell 
like  nuts  —  Duroc,  Bessieres,  Lannes  —  all 
strong  as  steel  bars,  though  he  could  bend 
them  as  he  pleased.  Besides  —  to  prove  he 
was  the  child  of  God,  and  made  to  be  the 
father  of  soldiers  —  was  he  ever  known  to 
be  lieutenant  or  captain?  No,  no;  commander- 


i84     Polk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

in-chief  from  the  start.  He  didn't  look  to 
be  more  than  twnety-four  years  of  age  when 
he  was  an  old  general  at  the  taking  of  Toulon, 
where  he  first  began  to  show  the  others  that 
they  knew  nothing  about  manoeuvring 
cannon. 

"After  that,  down  came  our  sHp  of  a  general 
to  command  the  grand  army  of  Italy,  which 
hadn't  bread,  nor  munitions,  nor  shoes,  nor 
coats  —  a  poor  army,  as  naked  as  a  worm. 
'My  friends,'  said  he,  'here  we  are  together. 
Get  it  into  your  pates  that  fifteen  days  from 
now  you  will  be  conquerors  —  new  clothes, 
good  gaiters,  famous  shoes,  and  every  man  with 
a  great-coat;  but,  my  children,  to  get  these 
things  you  must  march  to  Milan,  where  they 
are.'  And  we  marched.  France,  crushed  as 
flat  as  a  bed-bug,  straightened  up.  We  were 
thirty  thousand  bare-feet  against  eighty 
thousand  Austrian  bullies,  all  fine  men,  well 
set-up.  I  see  'em  now!  But  Napoleon- 
he  was  then  only  Bonaparte  — he  knew  how 
to  put  the  courage  into  us!  We  marched  by 
night,  and  we  marched  by  day;  we  slapped 
their  faces  at  Montenotte,  we  thrashed  them 
at  Rivoli,  Lodi,  Arcole,  Millesimo,  and  we 
never  let  'em  up.    A  soldier  gets  the  taste 


The  Peasant  Story  o]  Napoleon  185 

of  conquest.  So  Napoleon  whirled  round 
those  Austrian  generals,  who  didn't  know 
where  to  poke  themselves  to  get  out  of  his  way, 
and  he  pelted  'em  well  —  nipped  oS.  ten  thou- 
sand men  at  a  blow  sometimes,  by  getting 
round  them  with  fifteen  hundred  Frenchmen, 
and  then  he  gleaned  as  he  pleased.  He  took 
their  cannon,  their  supplies,  their  money, 
their  munitions,  in  short,  all  they  had  that 
was  good  to  take.  He  fought  them  and  beat 
them  on  the  mountains,  he  drove  them  into 
the  rivers  and  seas,  he  bit  'em  in  the  air,  he 
devoured  'em  on  the  ground,  and  he  lashed 
'em  everywhere.  Hey!  the  grand  army  feath- 
ered itseK  well;  for,  d'ye  see  the  Emperor, 
who  was  a  wit,  called  up  the  inhabitants  and 
told  them  he  was  there  to  deliver  them.  So 
after  that  the  natives  lodged  and  cherished 
us;  the  women  too,  and  very  judicious  they 
were.  Now  here's  the  end  of  it.  In  Ventose, 
'96  —  in  those  times  that  was  the  month  of 
March  of  to-day  —  we  lay  cuddled  in  a  corner 
of  Savoie  with  the  marmots;  and  yet,  before 
that  campaign  was  over,  we  were  masters 
of  Italy,  just  as  Napoleon  had  predicted;  and 
by  the  following  March  —  in  a  single  year 
and    two    campaigns  —  he    had    brought    us 


1 86     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

within  sight  of  Vienna.  Twas  a  clean  sweep* 
We  devoured  their  armies,  one  after  the  other, 
and  made  an  end  of  four  Austrian  generals. 
One  old  fellow,  with  white  hair,  was  roasted 
like  a  rat  in  the  straw  at  Mantua.  Kings 
begged  for  mercy  on  their  knees!  Peace  was 
won. 

"Could  a  man  have  done  that?  No;  God 
helped  him,  to  a  certainty! 

"He  divided  himself  up  like  the  loaves  in 
the  Gospel,  commanded  the  battle  by  day, 
planned  it  by  night;  going  and  coming,  for 
the  sentinels  saw  him  —  never  eating,  never 
sleeping.  So,  seeing  these  prodigies,  the  sol- 
diers adopted  him  for  their  father.  Forward, 
march!  Then  those  others,  the  rulers  in 
Paris,  seeing  this,  said  to  themselves:  'Here's 
a  bold  one  that  seems  to  get  his  orders  from 
the  skies;  he's  likely  to  put  his  paw  on  France. 
We  must  let  him  loose  on  Asia;  we  will  send 
him  to  America,  perhaps  that  will  satisfy  him.' 
But  't  was  written  above  for  him,  as  it  was  for 
Jesus  Christ.  The  command  went  forth  that 
he  should  go  to  Egypt.  See,  again,  his  re- 
semblance to  the  Son  of  God.  But  that's 
not  all.  He  called  together  his  best  veterans, 
his  fire-eaters,  the  ones  he  had  particularly 


The  Peasant  Story  of  Napoleon  187 

put  the  devil  into,  and  he  said  to  them  Uke 
this:  'My  friends,  they  have  given  us  Egypt  to 
chew  up,  just  to  keep  us  busy,  but  we'll  swal- 
low it  whole  in  a  couple  of  campaigns,  as  we 
did  Italy.  The  common  soldiers  shall  be 
princes  and  have  the  land  for  their  own.  For- 
ward, march!'  Torward,  march!'  cried  the 
sergeants,  and  there  we  were  at  Toulon,  road 
to  Egypt.  At  that  time  the  Enghsh  had  all 
their  ships  in  the  sea;  but  when  we  embarked, 
Napoleon  said:  'They  won't  see  us.  It  is  just 
as  well  that  you  should  know  from  this  time 
forth  that  your  general  has  got  his  star  in  the 
sky,  which  guides  and  protects  us.'  What 
was  said  was  done.  Passing  over  the  sea,  we 
took  Malta  like  an  orange,  just  to  quench  his 
thirst  for  victory;  for  he  was  a  man  who 
couldn't  live  and  do  nothing. 

"So  here  we  are  in  Egypt.  Good.  Once 
here,  other  orders.  The  Egyptians,  d'ye  see, 
are  men  who,  ever  since  the  earth  was,  have 
had  giants  for  sovereigns,  and  armies  as  nu- 
merous as  ants;  for,  you  must  understand, 
that's  the  land  of  genii  and  crocodiles,  where 
they've  built  pyramids  as  big  as  our  moun- 
tains, and  buried  their  kings  under  them  to 
keep  them  fresh  —  an  idea  that  pleased  'em 


i88     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

mightily.  So  then,  after  we  disembarked, 
the  Little  Corporal  said  to  us:  'My  children, 
the  country  you  are  going  to  conquer  has  a 
lot  of  gods  that  you  must  respect;  because 
Frenchmen  ought  to  be  friends  with  every- 
body, and  fight  the  nations  without  vexing 
the  inhabitants.  Get  it  into  your  skulls 
that  you  are  not  to  touch  anything  at  first, 
for  it  is  all  going  to  be  yours  soon.  Forward, 
march!'  So  far,  so  good.  But  all  those 
people  of  Africa,  to  whom  Napoleon  was  fore- 
told imder  the  name  of  Kebir-Bonaberdis  — 
a  word  of  their  lingo  that  means  'the  sultan 
fires'  —  were  afraid  as  the  devil  of  him.  So 
the  Grand  Turk,  and  Asia,  and  Africa  had 
recourse  to  magic.  They  sent  us  a  demon, 
named  the  Mahdi,  supposed  to  have  descended 
from  heaven  on  a  white  horse,  which,  like  its 
master,  was  bullet-proof;  and  both  of  them 
lived  on  air,  without  food  to  support  them. 
There  are  some  that  say  they  saw  them;  but 
I  can't  give  you  any  reasons  to  make  you 
certain  about  that.  The  rulers  of  Arabia 
and  the  Mamelukes  tried  to  make  their  troopers 
beheve  that  the  Mahdi  could  keep  them  from 
perishing  in  battle;  and  they  pretended  he 
was  an  angel  sent  from  heaven  to  fight  Na- 


The  Peasant  Story  of  Napoleon  189 

poleon  and  get  back  Solomon^s  seal.  Solo- 
mon's seal  was  part  of  their  paraphernalia 
which  they  vowed  our  general  had  stolen. 
You  must  understand  that  we'd  given  'em  a 
good  many  wry  faces,  in  spite  of  what  he  had 
said  to  us. 

"Now,  tell  me  how  they  knew  that  Na- 
poleon had  a  pact  with  God?  Was  that 
natural,  d'ye  think? 

"They  held  to  it  in  their  minds  that  Na- 
poleon coromanded  the  genii,  and  could  pass 
hither  and  thither  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye, 
like  a  bird.  The  fact  is,  he  was  everywhere. 
At  last,  it  came  to  his  carrying  off  a  queen 
beautiful  as  the  dawn,  for  whom  he  had 
offered  all  his  treasure,  and  diamonds  as  big 
as  pigeon's  eggs  —  a  bargain  which  the  Mame- 
luke to  whom  she  particularly  belonged  posi- 
tively refused,  although  he  had  several  others. 
Such  matters  when  they  come  to  that  pass,  can't 
be  settled  without  a  great  many  battles;  and, 
indeed,  there  was  no  scarcity  of  battles;  there 
was  fighting  enough  to  please  everybody. 
We  were  in  line  at  Alexandria,  at  Gizeh,  and 
before  the  Pyramids;  we  marched  in  the  sun 
and  through  the  sand,  where  some,  who  had 
the    dazzles,    saw   water    that    they  couldn't 


190     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

drink,  and  shade  where  their  flesh  was  roasted. 
But  we  made  short  work  of  the  Mamelukes; 
and  everybody  else  yielded  at  the  voice  of 
Napoleon,  who  took  possession  of  Upper  and 
Lower  Egypt,  Arabia,  and  even  the  capitals 
of  kingdoms  thart  were  no  more,  where  there 
were  thousands  of  statues  and  all  the  plagues 
of  Egypt,  more  particularly  lizards  —  a  mam- 
moth of  a  coimtry  where  everybody  could 
take  his  acres  of  land  for  as  little  as  he  pleased. 
Well,  while  Napoleon  was  busy  with  his 
affairs  inland  —  where  he  had  it  in  his  head 
to  do  fine  things  —  the  Enghsh  burned  his 
fleet  at  Aboukir;  for  they  were  always  look- 
ing about  them  to  annoy  us.  But  Napoleon, 
who  had  the  respect  of  the  East  and  of  the 
West,  whom  the  Pope  called  his  son,  and  the 
cousin  of  Mohammed  called  'his  dear  father,' 
resolved  to  punish  England,  and  get  hold 
of  India  in  exchange  for  his  fleet.  He  was 
just  about  to  take  us  across  the  Red  Sea  into 
Asia,  a  country  where  there  are  diamonds 
and  gold  to  pay  the  soldiers  and  palaces  for 
bivouacs,  when  the  Mahdi  made  a  treaty 
with  the  plague,  and  sent  it  down  to  hinder 
our  victories.  Halt!  The  army  to  a  man 
defiled  at  that  parade;  and  few  they  were 


Tlie  Peasant  Story  of  Napoleon  191 

who  came  back  on  their  feet.  Dying  sol- 
diers couldn't  take  Saint- Jean  d'Acre,  though 
they  rushed  at  it  three  times  with  generous 
and  martial  obstinacy.  The  Plague  was  the 
strongest.  No  saying  to  that  enemy,  ^My 
good  friend.'  Every  soldier  lay  ill.  Napoleon 
alone  was  fresh  as  a  rose,  and  the  whole  army 
saw  him  drinking  in  pestilence  without  its 
doing  him  a  bit  of  harm. 

"Ha!  my  friends!  will  you  tell  me  that 
thafs  in  the  nature  of  a  mere  man? 

"The  Mamelukes,  knowing  we  were  all 
in  the  ambulances,  thought  they  could  stop 
the  way;  but  that  sort  of  joke  wouldn't  do 
with  Napoleon.  So  he  said  to  his  demons,  his 
veterans,  those  that  had  the  toughest  hide, 
*Go,  clear  me  the  way.'  Junot,  a  sabre  of 
the  first  cut,  and  his  particular  friend,  took 
a  thousand  men,  no  more,  and  ripped  up  the 
army  of  the  pacha  who  had  had  the  presump- 
tion to  put  himself  in  the  way.  After  that, 
we  came  back  to  headquarters  at  Cairo.  Now, 
here's  another  side  of  the  story.  Napoleon 
absent,  France  was  letting  herself  be  ruined 
by  the  rulers  in  Paris,  who  kept  back  the  pay  of 
the  soldiers  of  the  other  armies,  and  their 
clothing,  and  their  rations;  left  them  to  die 


192     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

of  hunger,  and  expected  them  to  lay  down  the 
law  to  the  universe  without  taking  any  trouble 
to  help  them.  Idiots!  who  amused  themselves 
by  chattering,  instead  of  putting  their  own  hands 
in  the  dough.  Well,  that's  how  it  happened 
that  our  armies  were  beaten,  and  the  frontiers 
of  France  were  encroached  upon:  The  Man 
was  nor  there.  Now  observe,  I  say  man 
because  that's  what  they  called  him;  but 
'twas  nonsense,  for  he  had  a  star  and  all  its 
belongings;  it  was  we  who  were  only  men. 
He  taught  history  to  France  after  his  famous 
battle  of  Aboukir,  where,  without  losing  more 
than  three  himdred  men,  and  with  a  single 
division,  he  vanquished  the  grand  army  of 
the  Turk,  seventy-five  thousand  strong,  and 
hustled  more  than  haK  of  it  into  the  sea, 
r-r-rah! 

"That  was  his  last  thimder-clap  in  Egypt. 
He  said  to  himself,  seeing  the  way  things 
were  going  in  Paris,  T  am  the  saviour  of  France; 
I  know  it,  and  I  must  go.'  But,  understand 
me,  the  army  didn't  know  he  was  going,  or 
they'd  have  kept  him  by  force  and  made  him 
Emperor  of  the  East.  So  now  we  were  sad; 
for  He  was  gone  who  was  all  our  joy.  He 
left  the  command  to  Kleber,  a  big  mastiff, 


The  Peasant  Story  of  Napoleon  193 

who  came  off  duty  at  Cairo,  assassinated  by 
an  Egyptian,  whom  they  put  to  death  by 
empaling  him  on  a  bayonet;  that's  the  way 
they  guillotine  people  down  there.  But  it 
makes  'em  suffer  so  much  that  a  soldier  had 
pity  on  the  criminal  and  gave  him  his  canteen; 
and  then,  as  soon  as  the  Egyptian  had  drunk 
his  fill,  he  gave  up  the  ghost  with  all  the  pleas- 
ure in  Hfe.  But  that's  a  trifle  we  couldn't 
laugh  at  then.  Napoleon  embarked  in  a 
cockleshell,  a  httle  skiff  that  was  nothing  at 
all,  though  'twas  called  Tortune;'  and  in 
a  twinkling,  under  the  nose  of  England,  who 
was  blockading  him  with  ships  of  the  line, 
frigates,  and  anything  that  could  hoist  a  sail, 
he  crossed  over,  and  there  he  was  in  France. 
For  he  always  had  the  power,  mind  you,  of 
crossing  the  seas  at  one  straddle. 

"Was  that  a  human  man?    Bah! 

"So,  one  minute  he  is  at  Frejus,  the  next 
in  Paris.  There,  they  all  adore  him;  but  he 
summons  the  government.  'What  have  you 
done  with  my  children,  the  soldiers?'  he  says 
to  the  lawyers.  'You're  a  mob  of  rascally 
scribblers;  you  are  making  France  a  mess  of 
pottage,  and  snapping  your  fingers  at  what 
people   think   of  you.    It   won't   do;  and   I 


19^4     ^^^^  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

speak  the  opinion  of  everybody.'  So,  on  that, 
they  wanted  to  battle  with  him  and  kill  him 
—  cKck!  he  had  'em  locked  up  in  barracks, 
or  flying  out  of  windows,  or  drafted  among 
his  followers,  where  they  were  as  mute  as 
fishes  and  as  pliable  as  a  quid  of  tobacco. 
After  that  stroke  —  consul!  And  then,  as 
it  was  not  for  him  to  doubt  the  Supreme  Being, 
he  fulfilled  his  promise  to  the  good  God,  who, 
you  see,  had  kept  His  word  to  him.  He  gave 
Him  back  His  churches,  and  reestablished 
His  rehgion;  the  bells  rang  for  God  and  for 
him:  and  lo!  everybody  was  pleased;  primo^ 
the  priests,  whom  he  saved  from  being 
harassed;  secundOy  the  bourgeois,  who  thought 
only  of  their  trade,  and  no  longer  had  to  fear 
the  rapiamus  of  the  law,  which  had  got  to  be 
unjust;  tertio,  the  nobles,  for  he  forbade  they 
should  be  killed,  as,  unfortunately,  the  people 
had  got  the  habit  of  doing. 

"But  he  still  had  the  Enemy  to  wipe  out; 
and  he  wasn't  the  man  to  go  to  sleep  at  a  mess- 
table,  because,  d'ye  see,  his  eye  looked  over 
the  whole  earth  as  if  it  were  no  bigger  than  a 
man's  head.  So  then  he  appeared  in  Italy, 
like  as  though  he  had  stuck  his  head  through 
the  window.    One  glance  was  enough.    The 


The  Peasant  Story  of  Napoleon  195 

Atistrians  were  swallowed  up  at  Marengo 
Hke  so  many  gudgeons  by  a  whale!  Ouf! 
The  French  eagles  sang  their  paeans  so  loud 
that  all  the  world  heard  them  —  and  it  sufficed! 
*We  won't  play  that  game  any  more/  said  the 
German.  'Enough,  enough!'  said  all  the  rest. 
To  sum  up:  Europe  backed  down,  England 
knocked  under.  General  peace;  and  the  kings 
and  the  peoples  made  beheve  kiss  each  other. 
That's  the  time  when  the  Emperor  invented 
the  Legion  of  Honour  —  and  a  fine  thing,  too. 
'In  France'  —  this  is  what  he  said  at  Boulogne 
before  the  whole  army  —  'every  man  is  brave. 
So  the  citizen  who  does  a  fine  action  shall  be 
sister  to  the  soldier,  and  the  soldier  shall  be 
his  brother,  and  the  two  shall  be  one  under 
the  flag  of  honour.' 

"We,  who  were  down  in  Egypt,  now  came 
home.  All  was  changed!  He  left  us  general, 
and  hey!  in  a  twinkling  we  found  him  Em- 
peror. France  gave  herself  to  him,  like  a 
fine  girl  to  a  lancer.  When  it  was  done  —  to 
the  satisfaction  of  all,  as  you  may  say  —  a 
sacred  ceremony  took  place,  the  like  of  which 
was  never  seen  under  the  canopy  of  the  skies. 
The  Pope  and  the  cardinals,  in  their  red  and 
gold   vestments,   crossed   the  Alps   expressly 


196     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

to  crown  him  before  the  army  and  the  people, 
who  clapped  their  hands.  There  is  one  thing 
that  I  should  do  very  wrong  not  to  tell  you. 
In  Egypt,  in  the  desert  close  to  Syria,  the  Red 
Man  came  to  him  on  the  Mount  of  Moses,  and 
said,  'All  is  well/  Then,  at  Marengo,  the  night 
before  the  victory,  the  same  Red  Man  appeared 
before  him  for  the  second  time,  standing  erect 
and  saying:  Thou  shalt  see  the  world  at 
thy  feet;  thou  shalt  be  Emperor  of  France, 
King  of  Italy,  master  of  Holland,  sovereign 
of  Spain,  Portugal,  and  the  Illyrian  provinces, 
protector  of  Germany,  saviour  of  Poland, 
first  eagle  of  the  Legion  of  Honour  —  all.' 
This  Red  Man,  you  understand,  was  his 
genius,  his  spirit  —  a  sort  of  sateUite  who 
served  him,  as  some  say,  to  conmiimicate 
with  his  star.  I  never  really  believed  that. 
But  the  Red  Man  himseK  is  a  true  fact.  Na- 
poleon spoke  of  him,  and  said  he  came  to  him 
in  troubled  moments,  and  lived  in  the  palace 
of  the  Tuileries  imder  the  roof.  So,  on  the 
day  of  the  coronation.  Napoleon  saw  him 
for  the  third  time;  and  they  were  in  consul- 
tation over  many  things. 

"After   that.  Napoleon  went  to  Milan   to 
be  crowned  king  of  Italy,  and  there  the  grand 


The  Peasant  Story  of  Napoleon  197 

triumph  of  the  soldier  began.  Every  man  who 
could  write  was  made  an  officer.  Down  came 
pensions;  it  rained  duchies;  treasures  poured 
in  for  the  staff  which  didn't  cost  France  a 
penny;  and  the  Legion  of  Honour  provided 
incomes  for  the  private  soldiers  —  of  which 
I  receive  mine  to  this  day.  So  here  were  the 
armies  maintained  as  never  before  on  this  earth. 
But  besides  that,  the  Emperor,  knowing  that 
he  was  to  be  the  emperor  of  the  whole  world, 
bethought  him  of  the  bourgeois,  and  to  please 
them  he  built  fairy  monuments,  after  their 
own  ideas,  in  places  where  you'd  never  think 
to  find  any.  For  instance,  suppose  you  were 
coming  back  from  Spain  and  going  to  Berhn 
—  well,  you'd  find  triumphal  arches  along 
the  way,  with  common  soldiers  sculptured 
on  the  stone,  every  bit  the  same  as  generals. 
In  two  or  three  years,  and  without  imposing 
taxes  on  any  of  you.  Napoleon  filled  his  vaults 
with  gold,  built  palaces,  made  bridges,  roads, 
scholars,  fetes,  laws,  vessels,  harbours,  and 
spent  millions  upon  miUions  —  such  enormous 
sums  that  he  could,  so  they  tell  me,  have 
paved  France  from  end  to  end  with  five-franc 
pieces,  if  he  had  had  a  mind  to. 

"Now,  when  he  sat  at  ease  on  his  throne. 


198     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

and  was  master  of  all,  so  that  Europe  waited 
his  permission  to  do  his  bidding,  he  remembered 
his  four  brothers  and  his  three  sisters,  and  he 
said  to  us,  as  it  might  be  in  conversation,  in 
an  order  of  the  day,  ^My  children,  is  it  right 
that  the  blood  relations  of  your  Emperor 
should  be  begging  their  bread?  No.  I  wish 
to  see  them  in  splendour  like  myself.  It  be- 
comes, therefore,  absolutely  necessary  to  con- 
quer a  kingdom  for  each  of  them  —  to  the  end 
that  Frenchmen  may  be  masters  over  all 
lands,  that  the  soldiers  of  the  Guard  shall 
make  the  whole  earth  tremble,  that  France 
may  spit  where  she  Hkes,  and  that  all  the 
nations  shall  say  to  her,  as  it  is  written  on  my 
copper  coins,  'God  protects  you/'  ^Agreed!' 
cried  the  army.  'We'll  go  fish  for  thy  king- 
doms with  our  bayonets.'  Ha!  there  was  no 
backing  down,  don't  you  see!  If  he  had  taken 
it  into  his  head  to  conquer  the  moon,  we  should 
have  made  ready,  packed  knapsacks,  and 
clambered  up;  happily,  he  didn't  think  of 
it.  The  kings  of  the  countries,  who  liked 
their  comfortable  thrones,  were,  naturally, 
loath  to  budge,  and  had  to  have  their  ears 
pulled;  so  then  —  Forward,  march!  We  did 
march;  we   got    there;  and    the   earth   once 


The  Peasant  Story  of  Napoleon  199 

more  trembled  to  its  centre.  Hey!  the  men 
and  the  shoes  he  used  up  in  those  days!  The 
enemy  dealt  us  such  blows  that  none  but  the 
grand  army  could  have  borne  the  fatigue 
of  it.  But  you  are  not  ignorant  that  a  French- 
man is  born  a  philosopher,  and  knows  that  a 
little  sooner,  or  a  little  later,  he  has  got  to 
die.  So  we  were  ready  to  die  without  a  word, 
for  we  liked  to  see  the  Emperor  doing  that 
on  the  geographies.'' 

Here  the  narrator  nimbly  described  a  circle 
with  his  foot  on  the  floor  of  the  bam. 

"And  Napoleon  said,  There,  that's  to  be  a 
kingdom.'  And  a  kingdom  it  was.  Ha!  the 
good  times!  The  colonels  were  generals;  the 
generals,  marshals;  and  the  marshals,  kings. 
There's  one  of  'em  still  on  his  throne,  to  prove 
it  to  Europe;  but  he's  a  Gascon  and  a  traitor 
to  France  for  keeping  that  crown;  and  he 
doesn't  blush  for  shame  as  he  ought  to  do, 
because  crowns,  don't  you  see,  are  made  of 
gold.  I  who  am  speaking  to  you,  I  have  seen, 
in  Paris,  eleven  kings  and  a  mob  of  princes 
surrounding  Napoleon  like  the  rays  of  the  sun. 
You  understand,  of  course,  that  every  sol- 
dier had  the  chance  to  mount  a  throne,  pro- 
vided always  he  had  the  merit;  so  a  corporal 


200     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

of  the  Guard  was  a  sight  to  be  looked  at  as 
he  walked  along,  for  each  man  had  his  share  in 
the  victory,  and  'twas  plainly  set  forth  in  the 
bulletin.  What  victories  they  were!  Aus- 
terlitz,  where  the  army  manoeuvred  as  if  on 
parade;  Eylau,  where  we  drowned  the  Rus- 
sians in  a  lake,  as  though  Napoleon  had  blown 
them  into  it  with  the  breath  of  his  mouth; 
Wagram,  where  the  army  fought  for  three 
days  without  grumbhng.  We  won  as  many 
battles  as  there  are  saints  in  the  calendar. 
It  was  proved  then,  beyond  a  doubt,  that 
Napoleon  had  the  sword  of  God  in  his  scab- 
bard. The  soldiers  were  his  friends;  he  made 
them  his  children;  he  looked  after  us,  he  saw 
that  we  had  shoes,  and  shirts,  and  great- 
coats, and  bread,  and  cartridges;  but  he 
always  kept  up  his  majesty;  for,  don't  you 
see,  'twas  his  business  to  reign.  No  matter 
for  that,  however;  a  sergeant,  and  even  a 
common  soldier,  could  say  to  him,  'my  Em- 
peror,' just  as  you  say  to  me  sometimes,  'my 
good  friend.'  He  gave  us  an  answer  if  we 
appealed  to  him;  he  slept  in  the  snow  like 
the  rest  of  us;  and,  indeed,  he  had  almost 
the  air  of  a  human  man.  I  who  speak  to  you, 
I  have  seen  him  with  his  feet  among  the  grape- 


The  Peasant  Story  of  Napoleon  20i 

shot,  and  no  more  uneasy  than  you  are  now  — 
standing  steady,  looking  through  his  field- 
glass,  and  minding  his  business.  'Twas  that 
kept  the  rest  of  us  quiet.  I  don't  know  how 
he  did  it,  but  when  he  spoke  he  made  our 
hearts  burn  within  us;  and  to  show  him  we 
were  his  children,  incapable  of  balking,  didn't 
we  rush  at  the  mouths  of  the  rascally  cannon, 
that  belched  and  vomited  shot  and  shell, 
without  so  much  as  saying,  Took  out!' 
Why!  the  dying  must  needs  raise  their  heads 
to  salute  him  and  cry,  'Long  live  the  Em- 
peror!' 

"I  ask  you,  was  that  natural?  would  they 
have  done  that  for  a  human  man? 

"Well,  after  he  had  settled  the  world,  the 
Empress  Josephine,  his  wife,  a  good  woman 
all  the  same,  managed  matters  so  that  she 
did  not  bear  him  any  children,  and  he  was 
obliged  to  give  her  up,  though  he  loved  her 
considerably.  But,  you  see,  he  had  to  have 
little  ones  for  reasons  of  state.  Hearing  of 
this,  all  the  sovereigns  of  Europe  quarrelled 
as  to  which  of  them  should  give  him  a  wife. 
And  he  married,  so  they  told  us,  an  Austrian 
archduchess,  daughter  of  Caesar,  an  ancient 
man  about  whom  people  talk  a  good  deal,  and 


202     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

not  in  France  only  —  where  any  one  will  tell 
you  what  he  did  —  but  in  Europe.  It  is  all 
true,  for  I  myself  who  address  you  at  this 
moment,  I  have  been  on  the  Danube,  and 
have  seen  the  remains  of  a  bridge  built  by 
that  man,  who,  it  seems,  was  a  relation  of 
Napoleon  in  Rome,  and  that's  how  the  Em- 
peror got  the  inheritance  of  that  city  for  his 
son.  So  after  the  marriage,  which  was  a  fete 
for  the  whole  world,  and  in  honour  of  which 
he  released  the  people  of  ten  years'  taxes  — 
which  they  had  to  pay  all  the  same,  however, 
because  the  assessors  didn't  take  account  of 
what  he  said — his  wife  had  a  little  one,  who 
was  Eling  of  Rome.  Now,  there's  a  thing 
that  had  never  been  seen  on  this  earth;  never 
before  was  a  child  born  a  king  with  his  father 
living.  On  that  day  a  balloon  went  up  in 
Paris  to  tell  the  news  to  Rome,  and  that  balloon 
made  the  journey  in  one  day. 

"Now,  is  there  any  man  among  you  who 
will  stand  up  here  and  declare  to  me  that  all 
that  was  human?  No;  it  was  written  above; 
and  may  the  scurvy  seize  'em  who  deny  that 
he  was  sent  by  God  himself  for  the  triumph 
of  France! 

"Well,  here's  the  Emperor  of  Russia,  that 


The  Peasant  Story  oj  Napoleon  203 

used  to  be  his  friend,  he  gets  angry  because 
Napoleon  didn't  marry  a  Russian;  so  he 
joins  with  the  Enghsh,  our  enemies  —  to  whom 
our  Emperor  always  wanted  to  say  a  couple 
of  words  in  their  burrows,  only  he  was  pre- 
vented. Napoleon  gets  angry  too;  an  end 
had  to  be  put  to  such  doings;  so  he  says  to 
us:  ^Soldiers!  you  have  been  masters  of  every 
capital  in  Europe,  except  Moscow,  which  is 
now  the  ally  of  England.  To  conquer  Eng- 
land, and  India  which  belongs  to  the  English, 
it  becomes  our  peremptory  duty  to  go  to 
Moscow.'  Then  he  assembled  the  greatest 
army  that  ever  trailed  its  gaiters  over  the 
globe;  and  so  marvellously  in  hand  it  was 
that  he  reviewed  a  million  of  men  in  one  day. 
'Hourra!'*  cried  the  Russians.  Down  came 
all  Russia  and  those  animals  of  Cossacks  in 
a  flock.  'Twas  nation  against  nation,  a  general 
hurly-burly,  and  beware  who  could;  'Asia 
against  Europe,'  as  the  Red  Man  had  fore- 
told to  Napoleon.  'Enough/  cried  the  Em- 
peror, 'I'll  be  ready/ 

"So  now,  sure  emough,  came  all  the  kings, 
as  the  Red  Man  had  said,  to  lick  Napoleon's 
hand!    Austria,  Prussia,  Bavaria,  Saxony,  Po- 

*  Battle-cry  of  the  Cossacks. 


204     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

land,  Italy,  every  one  of  them  were  with  us, 
flattering  us;  ah,  it  was  fine!  The  eagles 
never  cawed  so  loud  as  at  those  parades, 
perched  high  above  the  banners  of  all  Europe. 
The  Poles  were  bursting  with  joy,  because 
Napoleon  was  going  to  release  them;  and 
that's  why  France  and  Poland  are  brothers 
to  this  day.  'Russia  is  ours,'  cried  the  army. 
We  plunged  into  it  well-supplied;  we  marched 
and  we  marched  —  no  Russians.  At  last 
we  found  the  brutes  entrenched  on  the  banks 
of  the  Moskva.  That's  where  I  won  my 
cross,  and  IVe  got  the  right  to  say  it  was  a 
damnable  battle.  This  was  how  it  came 
about.  The  Emperor  was  anxious.  He  had 
seen  the  Red  Man,  who  said  to  him,  'My  son, 
you  are  going  too  fast  for  your  feet;  you  will 
lack  men;  friends  will  betray  you.'  So  the 
Emperor  offered  peace.  But  before  signing, 
'Let  us  drub  those  Russians!'  he  said  to  us. 
'Done!'  cried  the  army.  'Forward,  march!' 
said  the  sergeants.  My  clothes  were  in  rags, 
my  shoes  worn  out,  from  trudging  along  those 
roads,  which  are  very  uncomfortable  ones: 
but  no  matter!  I  said  to  myself,  'As  it's  the 
last  of  our  earthquakings,  I'll  go  into  it,  tooth 
and  nail!'     We  were  drawn  up  in  line  before 


The  Peasant  Story  of  Napoleon  205 

the  great  ravine  —  front  seats,  as  'twere. 
Signal  given;  and  seven  hundred  pieces  of 
artillery  began  a  conversation  that  would 
bring  the  blood  from  your  ears.  Then  — 
must  do  justice  to  one's  enemies  —  the  Rus- 
sians let  themselves  be  killed  like  Frenchmen; 
they  wouldn't  give  way;  we  couldn't  advance. 
Torward!'  some  one  cried,  'here  comes  the 
Emperor!'  True  enough;  he  passed  at  a 
gallop,  waving  his  hand  to  let  us  know  we  must 
take  the  redoubt.  He  inspired  us;  on  we  ran; 
I  was  the  first  in  the  ravine.  Ha!  my  God! 
how  the  lieutenants  fell,  and  the  colonels, 
and  the  soldiers!  No  matter!  all  the  more 
shoes  for  those  that  had  none,  and  epau- 
lets for  the  clever  ones  who  knew  how  to 
read.  'Victory!'  cried  the  whole  line;  'Vic- 
tory!'—  and,  would  you  believe  it?  a  thing 
never  seen  before,  there  lay  twenty-five 
thousand  Frenchmen  on  the  ground.  'Twas 
like  mowing  down  a  wheat-field;  only  in 
place  of  the  ears  of  wheat  put  the  heads  of 
men!  We  were  sobered  by  this  time  —  those 
who  were  left  alive.  The  Man  rode  up; 
we  made  the  circle  round  him.  Ha!  he  knew 
how  to  cajole  his  children;  he  could  be  ami- 
able when  he  liked,  and  feed  'em  with  words 


2o6     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

when  their  stomachs  were  ravenous  with  the 
hunger  of  wolves.  Flatterer!  he  distributed 
the  crosses  himself,  he  uncovered  to  the  dead, 
*ind  then  he  cried  to  us,  ^On!  to  Moscow!' 
*To  Moscow! '  answered  the  army. 

"We  took  Moscow.  Would  you  believe 
it?  the  Russians  burned  their  own  city!  'Twas 
a  haystack  six  miles  square,  and  it  blazed  for 
two  days.  The  buildings  crashed  like  slates, 
and  showers  of  melted  iron  and  lead  rained 
down  upon  us,  which  was  naturally  horrible. 
I  may  say  to  you  plainly,  it  was  like  a  flash  of 
lightning  on  our  disasters.  The  Emperor  said, 
*We  have  done  enough;  my  soldiers  shall 
rest  here.'  So  we  rested  awhile,  just  to  get 
the  breath  into  our  bodies  and  the  flesh  on 
our  bones,  for  we  were  really  tired.  We  took 
possession  of  the  golden  cross  that  was  on 
the  Ejremlin;  and  every  soldier  brought  away 
with  him  a  small  fortune.  But  out  there 
the  winter  sets  in  a  month  earlier  —  a  thing 
those  fools  of  science  didn't  properly  explain. 
So,  coming  back,  the  cold  nipped  us.  No 
longer  an  army  —  do  you  hear  me?  —  no 
longer  any  generals,  no  longer  any  sergeants 
even.  'Twas  the  reign  of  wretchedness  and 
hunger  —  a   reign   of   equality   at   last.    No 


The  Peasant  Story  of  Napoleon  207 

one  thought  of  anything  but  to  see  France 
once  more;  no  one  stooped  to  pick  up 
his  gun  or  his  money  if  he  dropped  them; 
each  man  followed  his  nose,  and  went  as  he 
pleased  without  caring  for  glory.  The  weather 
was  so  bad  the  Emperor  couldn't  see  his  star; 
there  was  something  between  him  and  the 
skies.  Poor  man!  it  made  him  ill  to  see  his 
eagles  flying  away  from  victory.  Ah!  'twas 
a  mortal  blow,  you  may  believe  me. 

"Well,  we  got  to  the  Beresina.  My  friends, 
I  can  affirm  to  you  by  all  that  is  most  sacred, 
by  my  honour,  that  since  mankind  came  into 
the  world,  never,  never  was  there  seen  such 
a  fricassee  of  any  army  —  guns,  carriages, 
artillery- waggons — in  the  midst  of  such  snows, 
under  such  relentless  skies!  The  muzzles  of 
the  muskets  burned  our  hands  if  we  touched 
them,  the  iron  was  so  cold.  It  was  there  that 
the  army  was  saved  by  the  pontoniers,  who 
were  firm  at  their  post;  and  there  that  Gon- 
drin  —  sole  survivor  of  the  men  who  were 
bold  enough  to  go  into  the  water  and  build 
the  bridges  by  which  the  army  crossed  —  that 
Gondrin,  here  present,  admirably  conducted 
himself,  and  saved  us  from  the  Russians,  who, 
I  must  tell  you,  still  respected  the  grand  army^ 


2o8     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

remembering  its  victories.  And,"  he  added, 
pointing  to  Gondrin,  who  was  gazing  at  him 
with  the  peculiar  attention  of  a  deaf  man, 
"Gondrin  is  a  finished  soldier,  a  soldier  who 
is  honour  itself,  and  he  merits  your  highest 
esteem. 

"I  saw  the  Emperor,"  he  resumed,  "stand- 
ing by  the  bridge,  motionless,  not  feeling  the 
cold  —  was  that  human?  He  looked  at  the 
destruction  of  his  treasure,  his  friends,  his 
old  Egyptians.  Bah!  all  that  passed  him, 
women,  army-waggons,  artillery,  all  were  shat- 
tered, destroyed,  ruined.  The  bravest  carried 
the  eagles;  for  the  eagles,  d'ye  see,  were 
France,  the  nation,  all  of  you!  they  were  the 
civil  and  the  military  honour  that  must  be 
kept  pure;  could  their  heads  be  lowered  be- 
cause of  the  cold?  It  was  only  near  the 
Emperor  that  we  warmed  ourselves,  because 
when  he  was  in  danger  we  ran,  frozen  as  we 
were  —  we,  who  wouldn't  have  stretched  a 
hand  to  save  a  friend.  They  told  us  he  wept 
at  night  over  his  poor  family  of  soldiers.  Ah! 
none  but  he  and  Frenchmen  could  have  got 
themselves  out  of  that  business.  We  did  get 
out,  but  with  losses,  great  losses,  as  I  tell 
you.    The    AUies    captured    our    provisions. 


The  Peasant  Story  of  Napoleon  209 

Men  began  to  betray  him,  as  the  Red  Man 
predicted.  Those  chatterers  in  Paris,  who 
had  held  their  tongues  after  the  Imperial 
Guard  was  formed,  now  thought  he  was  dead; 
so  they  hoodwinked  the  prefect  of  police,  and 
hatched  a  conspiracy  to  overthrow  the  empire. 
He  heard  of  it;  it  worried  him.  He  left  us, 
saying:  ^ Adieu,  my  children;  guard  the  out- 
posts; I  shall  return  to  you.'  Bah!  without 
him  nothing  went  right;  the  generals  lost 
their  heads,  the  marshals  talked  nonsense 
and  committed  follies;  but  that  was  not 
surprising,  for  Napoleon,  who  was  kind,  had 
fed  'em  on  gold;  they  had  got  as  fat  as  lard, 
and  wouldn't  stir;  some  stayed  in  camp 
when  they  ought  to  have  been  warming  the 
backs  of  the  enemy  who  was  between  us  and 
France. 

"But  the  Emperor  came  back,  and  he 
brought  recruits,  famous  recruits;  he  changed 
their  backbone  and  made  'em  dogs  of  war, 
fit  to  set  their  teeth  into  anything;  and  he 
brought  a  guard  of  honour,  a  fine  body  indeed! 
• —  all  bourgeois,  who  melted  away  like  butter 
on  a  gridiron. 

"Well,  spite  of  our  stern  bearing,  here's 
everything    going    against    us;  and    yet    the 


2IO     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

army  did  prodigies  of  valour.  Then  came 
battles  on  the  mountains,  nations  against 
nations  —  Dresden,  Liitzen,  Bautzen.  Remem- 
ber these  days,  all  of  you,  for  'twas  then  that 
Frenchmen  were  so  particularly  heroic  that 
a  good  grenadier  only  lasted  six  months.  We 
triumphed  always;  yet  there  were  those  Eng- 
lish, in  our  rear,  rousing  revolts  against  us 
with  their  Hes!  No  matter,  we  cut  our  way 
home  through  the  whole  pack  of  the  nations. 
Wherever  the  Emperor  showed  himself  we 
followed  him;  for  if,  by  sea  or  land,  he  gave 
us  the  word  ^Go!'  we  went.  At  last,  we  were 
in  France;  and  many  a  poor  foot-soldier  felt 
the  air  of  his  own  country  restore  his  soul  to 
satisfaction,  spite  of  the  wintry  weather.  I 
can  say  for  myself  that  it  refreshed  my  life. 
Well,  next,  our  business  was  to  defend  France, 
our  country,  our  beautiful  France,  against, 
ail  Europe,  which  resented  our  having  laid 
down  the  law  to  the  Russians,  and  pushed 
them  back  into  their  dens  so  that  they  couldn't 
eat  us  up  alive,  as  northern  nations,  who  are 
dainty  and  like  southern  flesh,  have  a  habit 
of  doing  —  at  least,  so  I've  heard  some  gen- 
erals say.  Then  the  Emperor  saw  his  own 
father-in-law,  his  friends  whom  he  had  made 


The  Peasant  Story  of  Napoleon  211 

kings,  and  the  scoundrels  to  whom  he  had 
given  back  their  thrones,  all  against  him. 
Even  Frenchmen,  and  allies  in  our  own  ranks, 
turned  against  us  under  secret  orders,  as  at 
the  battle  of  Leipsic.  Would  common  sol- 
diers have  been  capable  of  such  wickedness? 
Three  times  a  day  men  were  false  to  their 
word  —  and  they  called  themselves  princes! 

"So,  then,  France  was  invaded.  Wher- 
ever the  Emperor  showed  his  lion  face,  the 
enemy  retreated;  and  he  did  more  prodigies 
in  defending  France  than  ever  he  had  done 
in  conquering  Italy,  the  East,  Spain,  Europe, 
and  Russia.  He  meant  to  bury  every  invader 
under  the  sod,  and  teach  'em  to  respect  the 
soil  of  France.  So  he  let  them  get  to  Paris, 
that  he  might  swallow  them  at  a  mouthful, 
and  rise  to  the  height  of  his  genius  in  a  battle 
greater  than  all  the  rest  —  a  mother-battle^ 
as  'twere.  But  there,  there!  the  Parisians 
were  afraid  for  their  twopenny  skins,  and  their 
trumpery  shops;  they  opened  the  gates.  Then 
the  Ragusades  began,  and  happiness  ended. 
The  Empress  was  fooled,  and  the  white  banner 
flaunted  from  the  windows.  The  generals 
whom  he  had  made  his  nearest  friends  aban- 
doned him  for  the  Bourbons  —  a  set  of  people 


212     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

no  one  had  heard  tell  of.  The  Emperor  bade 
us  farewell  at  Fontainebleau:  'Soldiers!'  — 
I  can  hear  him  now;  we  wept  like  children;  the 
flags  and  the  eagles  were  lowered  as  if  for  a 
funeral:  it  was,  I  may  well  say  it  to  you,  it 
was  the  funeral  of  the  Empire;  her  dapper 
armies  were  nothing  now  but  skeletons.  So 
he  said  to  us,  standing  there  on  the  portico 
of  his  palace:  'My  soldiers!  we  are  vanquished 
by  treachery;  but  we  shall  meet  in  heaven,  the 
country  of  the  brave.  Defend  my  child, 
whom  I  conunit  to  you.  Long  live  Napoleon 
11.!'  He  meant  to  die,  that  no  man  should 
look  upon  Napoleon  vanquished;  he  took 
poison,  enough  to  have  killed  a  regiment, 
because,  like  Jesus  Christ  before  his  Passion, 
he  thought  himself  abandoned  of  God  and  his 
talisman.     But  the  poison  did  not  hurt  him. 

''See  again!  he  found  he  was  immortal. 

"Sure  of  himself,  knowing  he  must  ever 
be  The  Emperor,  he  went  for  a  while  to  an 
island  to  study  out  the  nature  of  these  others, 
who,  you  may  be  sure,  committed  follies 
without  end.  Whilst  he  bided  his  time  down 
there,  the  Chinese,  and  the  wild  men  on  the 
coast  of  Africa,  and  the  Barbary  States,  and 
others   who   are   not   at   all   accommodating, 


The  Peasant  Story  of  Napoleon  213 

knew  so  well  he  was  more  than  man  that  they 
respected  his  tent,  saying  to  touch  it  would  be 
to  offend  God.  Thus,  d'ye  see,  when  these  others 
turned  him  from  the  doors  of  his  own  France, 
he  still  reigned  over  the  whole  world.  Be- 
fore long  he  embarked  in  the  same  little  cockle- 
shell of  a  boat  he  had  had  in  Egypt,  sailed 
roimd  the  beard  of  the  English,  set  foot  in 
France,  and  France  acclaimed  him.  The  sacred 
cuckoo  flew  from  spire  to  spire;  all  France 
cried  out  with  one  voice,  ^Long  live  the  Em- 
peror!' In  this  region,  here,  the  enthusiasm 
for  that  wonder  of  the  ages  was,  I  may  say, 
sohd.  Dauphine  behaved  well;  and  I  am 
particularly  pleased  to  know  that  her  people 
wept  when  they  saw,  once  more,  the  gray 
top-coat.  March  first  it  was,  when  Napoleon 
landed  with  two  hundred  men  to  conquer  that 
kingdom  of  France  and  of  Navarre,  which, 
on  the  twentieth  of  the  same  month  was  again 
the  French  Empire.  On  that  day  our  Man 
was  in  Paris;  he  had  made  a  clean  sweep, 
recovered  his  dear  France,  and  gathered  his 
veterans  together  by  ,  saying  no  more  than 
three  words,  T  am  here.' 

"'Twas  the  greatest  miracle  God  had  yet 
done!    Before  him,  did  ever  man  recover  an 


214     Folk  Tales  Every  Child  Should  Know 

empire  by  showing  his  hat?  And  these  others, 
who  thought  they  had  subdued  France!  Not 
they!  At  sight  of  the  eagles,  a  national  army 
sprang  up,  and  we  marched  to  Waterloo. 
There,  the  Guard  died  at  one  blow.  Napoleon, 
in  despair,  threw  himself  three  times  before 
the  cannon  of  the  enemy  without  obtaining 
death.  We  saw  that.  The  battle  was  lost. 
That  night  the  Emperor  called  his  old  soldiers 
to  him;  on  the  field  soaked  with  our  blood 
he  burned  his  banners  and  his  eagles  —  his 
poor  eagles,  ever  victorious,  who  cried  Tor- 
ward'  in  the  battles,  and  had  flown  the  length 
and  breadth  of  Europe,  they  were  saved  the 
infamy  of  belonging  to  the  enemy:  all  the 
treasures  of  England  couldn't  get  her  a  tail- 
/■**ather  of  them.  No  more  eagles  —  the  rest 
is  well  known.  The  Red  Man  went  over  to 
the  Bourbons,  like  the  scoundrel  that  he  is. 
France  is  crushed;  the  soldier  is  nothing; 
they  deprive  him  of  his  dues;  they  discharge 
him  to  make  room  for  broken-down  nobles  — 
ah,  'tis  pitiable!  They  seized  Napoleon  by 
treachery;  the  English  nailed  him  on  a  deser^ 
island  in  mid-ocean  on  a  rock  raised  ten  thou 
sand  feet  above  the  earth;  and  there  he  is 
and  will  be,  till  the  Red  Man  gives  him  back 


The  Peasant  Story  of  Napoleon  •X15 

his  power  for  the  happiness  of  France.  These 
others  say  he's  dead.  Ha,  dead!  'Tis  easy 
to  see  they  don't  know  Him.  They  tell  that 
fib  to  catch  the  people,  and  feel  safe  in  their 
hovel  of  a  government.  Listen!  the  truth 
at  the  bottom  of  it  all  is  that  his  friends  have 
left  him  alone  on  the  desert  isle  to  fulfil  a 
prophecy,  for  I  forgot  to  say  that  his  name, 
Napoleon,  means  ^Hon  of  the  desert.'  Now 
this  that  I  tell  you  is  true  as  the  Gospel.  All 
other  tales  that  you  hear  about  the  Emperor 
are  follies  without  common-sense;  because, 
d'ye  see,  God  never  gave  to  child  of  woman 
born  the  right  to  stamp  his  name  in  red  as  he 
did,  on  the  earth,  which  forever  shall  remem- 
ber him!  Long  five  Napoleon,  the  father  of 
his  people  and  of  the  soldier!" 


TBE  END 


University  of 
Connecticut 

Libraries 


39153028544924 


